Dead of Night
by Caris August
Summary: The journey has only just begun. Who has enslaved an entire race? Who will be forced to pay the consequences? Who will save China? Follow Po, Tigress, and the rest of the Five as they choose just what it is they stand for.
1. The preview

**I don't own Kung Fu Panda, honestly people. You really believe I would? :)**

**Where to begin? Kung Fu Panda is pretty much one of the best animated movies ever (is that a good place to start?) :) and in the last little bit I thought it'd be neat to do a story on them. And as usual, once the thought ocured to me I couldn't get it out of my head. Anyways, I had no idea where to start writing, because KFP is such a HUGE universe, anything could happen! So I decided to just go with a preview and see what you guys think. For sure, I want it to be a Tigress and Po story.. just because they confuse me and I want to have my way with how they deal with whatever is going on between them. They're awkward, but somehow manage to still be sweet. **

**But yeah, other than that everything is pretty much flexible. I have some ideas. Some good and some terrible. :) But if you guys get inspired, or have a KFP story locked up in your brain which you'd want to read but don't want to write then tell me about it! This fanfic can be anything you guys want (except slash and R rated scenes, because I just DON'T go there. Sorry, it's for your own good.). Unleash your imagination on me peoplez! You can write me personally or tell me about any ideas you have in a review, whatever you like. I'm super excied to possibly get the chance to work with you guys. Because you're all seriously pretty darn awesome! **

**So yup. Visit my profile for more information or follow me on twitter under CarisAugust. I love you all and thanks for taking the time to look through. Sorry its so long and a bit boring, but this was my first time writing for KFP and I just needed to get my head wrapped around things. :) Anyways tell me if its OC! :) **

Warm yet breezy midnight air brushed past her ever flickering ears as she walked down the inclining path that lead back to the Jade Palace. Master Tigress was on her return from her usual nocturnal stroll into the forest past the Pool of Sacred Tears. She adored the palace, and her companions, but she also was in love with the wilderness, its ruggedness and her time that she spent on her own. Time that was used to meditate on… well, everything and anything really, whatever the feline felt like she needed to concentrate about; whether that was soul searching, or simply letting her thoughts wonder peacefully. This was the time to do whatever she felt like she had to get done. The time to work through her crammed mind and draw closer to finally finding her Inner Peace, Tigress had yet to discover it, but she knew that she was inching forwards and making progress each day. The proof was in the fact that her mind wasn't the jumbled up maze it used to be. She was a complex individual, often stumping and surprising even herself by her words and actions, but ever so slowly she was beginning to reach the point where she'd happily be able to say that she truly understood herself.

A soft sigh escaped her, and as her feet meandered ever forward on the worn pathway along the side of the cliff face Tigress let her gaze roll up into the night sky. The stars shone proudly, twinkling and scattered over the dark curtain they called the night. And each had its place. Each star was equally as important as the others, no matter how big or how small; because it was only together that they could make up the universe, even one small star amiss would have somehow dampened the glory of the whole scene.

It was so magnificent and so very majestic, and without much thinking Tigress agreed with herself that the panda should be here to see it with her. She smirked to herself. He would love it out here. Po. All of a sudden her peace shattered as a million new thoughts invaded her mind, it happened every time she unknowingly brought the Dragon Warrior front and center in her head.

Po.

That name was the reason for so much change in her life, so much unwilling change, but much needed change nonetheless. It was ironic how someone just being their happy go lucky, average, and completely naïve self could become the leader of so much greatness in the matter of months. But then again, Po wasn't your average guy, was he? On the outside: certainly. That was where they had all judged him too quickly; that pot belly, that posture, and that appetite had blinded them all.

Tigress winced as she kept striding, she had judged him… hated him even. Before she even knew him. Physical appearances meant nothing, and she most of all had forgotten that, she missed out on getting to know the real Po and it was only when Tai Lung went crashing into the ground that Tigress finally realized that Po _was _the Dragon Warrior and no on could do the title justice any better than he. Not even her. It was when she admitted that she had been wrong, and had come to accept the turn of events that Tigress began to see Po, to actual see _him. _

He was incredible. He had the most compassion she had ever seen, the greatest sense of right and wrong, and his loyalty to the ones he cared for blew her away. Po was comical, and as Tigress had slowly given up her hostile attitude towards him she had had the opportunity to discover just how funny one big black and white panda could be. He made her laugh… no one made Tigress laugh. No one. Po also had this thing where he just knew how to read everyone, he was able to connect with people nobody else could. He understood others, he felt for them. It was like he was constantly reading the minds of his companions'… especially hers. It frightened her that Po didn't even try, didn't even know he was doing it, and could voice her thoughts as if he had reached into her striped ears and ripped them from her brain. No one should understand her that well, sometimes he knew more than she did. However, no matter how much that made Tigress feel like distancing herself from him, she couldn't. One look into those huge sea green eyes and she found that she was bound to him, just like the rest of the five… perhaps even more so in some ways. His gaze always put her at rest, it was reassuring, comforting, content, and despite how much she regretted admitting it, his jade eyes made Tigress feel at home, for they were a part of some one who was completely dedicated to her and the rest of the Five. Po would never leave them hanging.

He fought for them, as she, Viper, Monkey, Mantis, and Crane had learned to fight for him. Po respected them, honored their decisions, and felt deeply for their safety, and they did the same in return. Po Ping would never, if he could help it, let them down; the battle at Gongmen city had proved that much to her. She was safe with trusting the panda, she knew without a doubt, and Tigress was mighty glad for that since she had never really found that in anyone else before. Did it scare her to put her trust in someone? Affirmative. But was it worth it? Heck, yes. He had become one of her dearest friends in less than a complete year. Actually, not counting Viper, Po _was _her closest confidante. He was irreplaceable.

She grinned, knowing she was being foolish for feeling so elated simply because of the fact that Po was her friend, but she couldn't seem to help it. Tigress hadn't been very good at containing anything lately; hence her sudden hug to comfort Po in the prison. Po was affecting her crazily, messing with her head… and somehow she didn't mind one bit. Tigress leapt into the air and gracefully grabbed hold of one of the many strong roots that sprouted out of the cliff side. Using momentum and nothing else she swung upwards, her four paws landing on the top of the root precariously.

She stood, perfectly balanced, and allowed her hind legs to dig into the bark beneath her for support. Tigress closed her eyes and breathed deeply, she smelt cold grass, the dirt from the trail, and the sap from the oozing slices her claws had made in the root as she hoisted herself up. Life teamed all around her, even as the world slept nature was still at work. She loved it. After remaining there for several long minutes, Tigress finally sighed as she decided it was time to head in. Even she needed to sleep for at least a few hours before dawn broke. Eyes snapping open, she leapt ten feet forwards to the closest root that would support her weight, not even bothering to use the trail below her. She skipped silently from root to root, making her way closer to the palace wall.

Tigress launched herself from the last root as the path ended and landed on all fours onto the soft stretch of grass that wrapped around the Jade palace. _"Home," _she purred inwardly as her stare roamed with familiarity over the looming building. She didn't even straighten up before taking off into a sprint, gaining just enough speed to successfully go lunging over the twenty seven foot high defense wall, her tail not even grazing the top. Tigress came flying towards the ground and slipped her head close to her chest to do a role to break her fall. She landed gently on the palace grounds without so much as "thump". She stood from her crouch, and brushed a stray piece of grass from her silk vest unconsciously as she gazed around warily for any sign of Shifu. He didn't exactly know about her little late night strolls, but he hadn't caught her yet.

Coast clear, Tigress dropped the defensive and let herself slump a little as she headed silently towards the sleeping courters. She hurried up the three stone steps, her paws padding beneath her; reaching the door Tigress glanced back to do a double check, just to make sure. Eyes sweeping every nook and cranny, she was about to haul the door open, content that no one was watching before her gaze caught something odd. The palace gate was… open.

Why was it agar like that? It was never open during the day, let alone in the middle of the night.

Tigress's fur bristled uneasily, yet she sensed no sign of danger. If someone wanted to attack her, they would have done it by now. They would have done it while her guard had been down. _"Curiosity killed the cat,"_ ran briefly through her head, but Tigress pushed her subconscious warning aside as her interest got the best of her. Slowly, ever so slowly, she descended the stairs, and with her unmoving gaze locked on the open gate for any sign of intruders she backed up soundlessly into the shadows casted by the defense wall.

Tigress pressed her back against the hard cold brick, and stealthily crept forwards, one foot inching in front of the other until she was only thirty centimeters from the entrance. Her ears twitched endlessly, waiting and wanting to hear something, anything that would give her a heads up as to what laid just around the corner. And then she heard it. A soft distinct sigh drifting on the air mixed with a raspy weary gurgle. So there was someone out there. Tigress rolled her shoulders soundlessly, well, whatever they were sighing about they'd have worse things to worry about once she showed herself. Whoever dared stand even outside the palace gates in the dead of night was definitely up to no good. A lesson needed to be taught. Discipline given. And Tigress was the one for the job.

She prepared herself, breathing deep to steady her body. She allowed her eyes to narrow into their natural hard stare as the orange tint in them flashed dangerously. Feet separated. Back straight. Arms loose. Hands firm. Ready to make an assault, Tigress swished her tail back and forth as she counted silently in her head.

_Swish… _Five.

_Swish… _Four.

_Swish… _Three.

_Swish… _Two.

_Swish…_ And she propelled herself forwards around the brick wall without ever reaching "one". She'd have to work on her patience. Tigress with her hands up in her fighting stance, stopped dead in her tracks as the front grounds outside the gate filled her vision. Her hard stare dropped onto the lump that sat on the very top of the rock staircase that led down the mountain, and her arms dropped immediately down to her sides. Everyone was familiar with that black and white coat, and she even more than anyone. Po sat with his back to her, oblivious that she stood mere feet away from him, oblivious that she had been ready to sink her teeth into him. His gaze was directed out over the Valley of Peace, and as Tigress watched him silently in shock the snarl fell off her face.

The tiniest of winds blew by, but it was enough for her to notice the way his fur bristled in displeasure at the cool breeze. Tigress stood mesmerized for a brief and fleeting moment before picking up on the way Po was slumped forward, his limbs heavy. She just knew his mind was picking its way through thoughts that were off somewhere far away… and perhaps thoughts that weren't very positive Tigress concluded as she watched Po's ears flick back slightly as he winced. _"Whatever is troubling him is not my problem," _the feline Master reminded herself before she could stride over to place a comforting hand on his shoulder, _"I may only make things worse." _

Torn, she stared without giving away her presence as she contemplated if she should disturb the Dragon Warrior during his heavy-hearted meditation. After a long moment she moved to walk and disappear unseen back into the night, but stopped herself halfway through the action. Tigress turned back hesitantly as she battled with herself. He was the Dragon Warrior, he could handle himself. But Tigress turned back to the panda a second time and as her sharp gaze ran over his features she felt herself soften. He wasn't the Dragon Warrior. Not tonight anyway. Tonight he was just Po, her friend. And she didn't feel like being a Master of Kung Fu, or the leader of the Furious Five either. She just wanted to be Tigress, the Tigress only Po could bring out of her. His comrade, Tigress.

She felt herself cave in before she could stop it from happening and she turned fully back towards the panda. There were still a few good hours left until dawn. That should be plenty of time for Po to share his problems and for them to sift through them to find an answer or whatever it was that he was searching for. No sleep for either one of them tonight. But Tigress pushed the thought aside as she readied herself to make her presence known.

"I did not expect to find you here…" Tigress called out gently, voice floating out into the air. Po's head wiped up a hundred miles an hour as he realized he wasn't alone. He glanced behind him, confused, and their eyes locked. Warm and relaxed emerald meeting fiery scarlet. A blush crept into his cheeks as he realized he had been discovered and Tigress couldn't help but smirk.

"Hey Tigress," he called out invitingly after a few seconds of delayed reaction.

She reused his greeting. "Hey Po."

They stared a little longer, both with relaxed smiles on their faces. Until Po finally reached up and patted the space next to him. The gesture didn't go unanswered and after a bit of a pause Tigress covered the distance between them slowly and confidently with an easy stride and closed composure. But it was all an act. Around Po it always was.

She settled down next to him, her muscles tired and Tigress wondered how they'd feel tomorrow night after eight hours of training and no sleep. But as she looked over at Po's goofy grin her spirit lightened. She would fret about what happened tomorrow when it happened, not a second earlier. Tonight, Tigress and Po were each others. Come what may.


	2. Think it through

**Disclaimer: **Never have I ever owned Kung Fu Panda****

**Yay! The first chapter of Dead of Night is done! This chapter includes the earlier preview I uploaded. Please enjoy! I've found my inspiration and my story idea, so I have at least an inkling of a plan now. :):) Thank you to all who reviewed, and all who read. You guys are awesome, thanks for taking the time. Enjoy! **

**~C.A**

* * *

><p>Warm yet breezy midnight air brushed past her ever flickering ears as she walked down the inclining path that lead back to the Jade Palace. Master Tigress was on her return from her usual nocturnal stroll into the forest past the Pool of Sacred Tears. She adored the palace, and her companions, but she also was in love with the wilderness, its ruggedness and her time that she spent on her own. Time that was used to meditate on… well, everything and anything really, whatever the feline felt like she needed to concentrate about; whether that was soul searching, or simply letting her thoughts wonder peacefully. This was the time to do whatever she felt like she had to get done. The time to work through her crammed mind and draw closer to finally finding her Inner Peace, Tigress had yet to discover it, but she knew that she was inching forwards and making progress each day. The proof was in the fact that her mind wasn't the jumbled up maze it used to be. She was a complex individual, often stumping and surprising even herself by her words and actions, but ever so slowly she was beginning to reach the point where she'd happily be able to say that she truly understood herself.<p>

A soft sigh escaped her, and as her feet meandered ever forward on the worn pathway along the side of the cliff face Tigress let her gaze roll up into the night sky. The stars shone proudly, twinkling and scattered over the dark curtain they called the night. And each had its place. Each star was equally as important as the others, no matter how big or how small; because it was only together that they could make up the universe, even one small star amiss would have somehow dampened the glory of the whole scene.

It was so magnificent and so very majestic, and without much thinking Tigress agreed with herself that the panda should be here to see it with her. She smirked to herself. He would love it out here. Po. All of a sudden her peace shattered as a million new thoughts invaded her mind, it happened every time she unknowingly brought the Dragon Warrior front and center in her head.

Po.

That name was the reason for so much change in her life, so much unwilling change, but much needed change nonetheless. It was ironic how someone just being their happy go lucky, average, and completely naïve self could become the leader of so much greatness in the matter of months. But then again, Po wasn't your average guy, was he? On the outside: certainly. That was where they had all judged him too quickly; that pot belly, that posture, and that appetite had blinded them all.

Tigress winced as she kept striding, she had judged him… hated him even. Before she even knew him. Physical appearances meant nothing, and she most of all had forgotten that, she missed out on getting to know the real Po and it was only when Tai Lung went crashing into the ground that Tigress finally realized that Po _was _the Dragon Warrior and no on could do the title justice any better than he. Not even her. It was when she admitted that she had been wrong, and had come to accept the turn of events that Tigress began to see Po, to actual see _him. _

He was incredible. He had the most compassion she had ever seen, the greatest sense of right and wrong, and his loyalty to the ones he cared for blew her away. Po was comical, and as Tigress had slowly given up her hostile attitude towards him she had had the opportunity to discover just how funny one big black and white panda could be. He made her laugh… no one made Tigress laugh. No one. Po also had this thing where he just knew how to read everyone, he was able to connect with people nobody else could. He understood others, he felt for them. It was like he was constantly reading the minds of his companions'… especially hers. It frightened her that Po didn't even try, didn't even know he was doing it, and could voice her thoughts as if he had reached into her striped ears and ripped them from her brain. No one should understand her that well, sometimes he knew more than she did. However, no matter how much that made Tigress feel like distancing herself from him, she couldn't. One look into those huge sea green eyes and she found that she was bound to him, just like the rest of the five… perhaps even more so in some ways. His gaze always put her at rest, it was reassuring, comforting, content, and despite how much she regretted admitting it, his jade eyes made Tigress feel at home, for they were a part of some one who was completely dedicated to her and the rest of the Five. Po would never leave them hanging.

He fought for them, as she, Viper, Monkey, Mantis, and Crane had learned to fight for him. Po respected them, honored their decisions, and felt deeply for their safety, and they did the same in return. Po Ping would never, if he could help it, let them down; the battle at Gongmen city had proved that much to her. She was safe with trusting the panda, she knew without a doubt, and Tigress was mighty glad for that since she had never really found that in anyone else before. Did it scare her to put her trust in someone? Affirmative. But was it worth it? Heck, yes. He had become one of her dearest friends in less than a complete year. Actually, not counting Viper, Po _was _her closest confidante. He was irreplaceable.

She grinned, knowing she was being foolish for feeling so elated simply because of the fact that Po was her friend, but she couldn't seem to help it. Tigress hadn't been very good at containing anything lately; hence her sudden hug to comfort Po in the prison. Po was affecting her crazily, messing with her head… and somehow she didn't mind one bit. Tigress leapt into the air and gracefully grabbed hold of one of the many strong roots that sprouted out of the cliff side. Using momentum and nothing else she swung upwards, her four paws landing on the top of the root precariously.

She stood, perfectly balanced, and allowed her hind legs to dig into the bark beneath her for support. Tigress closed her eyes and breathed deeply, she smelt cold grass, the dirt from the trail, and the sap from the oozing slices her claws had made in the root as she hoisted herself up. Life teamed all around her, even as the world slept nature was still at work. She loved it. After remaining there for several long minutes, Tigress finally sighed as she decided it was time to head in. Even she needed to sleep for at least a few hours before dawn broke. Eyes snapping open, she leapt ten feet forwards to the closest root that would support her weight, not even bothering to use the trail below her. She skipped silently from root to root, making her way closer to the palace wall.

Tigress launched herself from the last root as the path ended and landed on all fours onto the soft stretch of grass that wrapped around the Jade palace. _"Home," _she purred inwardly as her stare roamed with familiarity over the looming building. She didn't even straighten up before taking off into a sprint, gaining just enough speed to successfully go lunging over the twenty seven foot high defense wall, her tail not even grazing the top. Tigress came flying towards the ground and slipped her head close to her chest to do a role to break her fall. She landed gently on the palace grounds without so much as "thump". She stood from her crouch, and brushed a stray piece of grass from her silk vest unconsciously as she gazed around warily for any sign of Shifu. He didn't exactly know about her little late night strolls, but he hadn't caught her yet.

Coast clear, Tigress dropped the defensive and let herself slump a little as she headed silently towards the sleeping courters. She hurried up the three stone steps, her paws padding beneath her; reaching the door Tigress glanced back to do a double check, just to make sure. Eyes sweeping every nook and cranny, she was about to haul the door open, content that no one was watching before her gaze caught something odd. The palace gate was… open.

Why was it agar like that? It was never open during the day, let alone in the middle of the night.

Tigress's fur bristled uneasily, yet she sensed no sign of danger. If someone wanted to attack her, they would have done it by now. They would have done it while her guard had been down. _"Curiosity killed the cat,"_ ran briefly through her head, but Tigress pushed her subconscious warning aside as her interest got the best of her. Slowly, ever so slowly, she descended the stairs, and with her unmoving gaze locked on the open gate for any sign of intruders she backed up soundlessly into the shadows casted by the defense wall.

Tigress pressed her back against the hard cold brick, and stealthily crept forwards, one foot inching in front of the other until she was only thirty centimeters from the entrance. Her ears twitched endlessly, waiting and wanting to hear something, anything that would give her a heads up as to what laid just around the corner. And then she heard it. A soft distinct sigh drifting on the air mixed with a raspy weary gurgle. So there was someone out there. Tigress rolled her shoulders soundlessly, well, whatever they were sighing about they'd have worse things to worry about once she showed herself. Whoever dared stand even outside the palace gates in the dead of night was definitely up to no good. A lesson needed to be taught. Discipline given. And Tigress was the one for the job.

She prepared herself, breathing deep to steady her body. She allowed her eyes to narrow into their natural hard stare as the orange tint in them flashed dangerously. Feet separated. Back straight. Arms loose. Hands firm. Ready to make an assault, Tigress swished her tail back and forth as she counted silently in her head.

_Swish… _Five.

_Swish… _Four.

_Swish… _Three.

_Swish… _Two.

_Swish…_ And she propelled herself forwards around the brick wall without ever reaching "one". She'd have to work on her patience. Tigress with her hands up in her fighting stance, stopped dead in her tracks as the front grounds outside the gate filled her vision. Her hard stare dropped onto the lump that sat on the very top of the rock staircase that led down the mountain, and her arms dropped immediately down to her sides. Everyone was familiar with that black and white coat, and she even more than anyone. Po sat with his back to her, oblivious that she stood mere feet away from him, oblivious that she had been ready to sink her teeth into him. His gaze was directed out over the Valley of Peace, and as Tigress watched him silently in shock the snarl fell off her face.

The tiniest of winds blew by, but it was enough for her to notice the way his fur bristled in displeasure at the cool breeze. Tigress stood mesmerized for a brief and fleeting moment before picking up on the way Po was slumped forward, his limbs heavy. She just knew his mind was picking its way through thoughts that were off somewhere far away… and perhaps thoughts that weren't very positive Tigress concluded as she watched Po's ears flick back slightly as he winced. _"Whatever is troubling him is not my problem," _the feline Master reminded herself before she could stride over to place a comforting hand on his shoulder, _"I may only make things worse." _

Torn, she stared without giving away her presence as she contemplated if she should disturb the Dragon Warrior during his heavy-hearted meditation. After a long moment she moved to walk and disappear unseen back into the night, but stopped herself halfway through the action. Tigress turned back hesitantly as she battled with herself. He was the Dragon Warrior, he could handle himself. But Tigress turned back to the panda a second time and as her sharp gaze ran over his features she felt herself soften. He wasn't the Dragon Warrior. Not tonight anyway. Tonight he was just Po, her friend. And she didn't feel like being a Master of Kung Fu, or the leader of the Furious Five either. She just wanted to be Tigress, the Tigress only Po could bring out of her. His comrade, Tigress.

She felt herself cave in before she could stop it from happening and she turned fully back towards the panda. There were still a few good hours left until dawn. That should be plenty of time for Po to share his problems and for them to sift through them to find an answer or whatever it was that he was searching for. No sleep for either one of them tonight. But Tigress pushed the thought aside as she readied herself to make her presence known.

"I did not expect to find you here…" Tigress called out gently, voice floating out into the air. Po's head wiped up a hundred miles an hour as he realized he wasn't alone. He glanced behind him, confused, and their eyes locked. Warm and relaxed emerald meeting fiery scarlet. A blush crept into his cheeks as he realized he had been discovered and Tigress couldn't help but smirk.

"Hey Tigress," he called out invitingly after a few seconds of delayed reaction.

She reused his greeting. "Hey Po."

They stared a little longer, both with relaxed smiles on their faces. Until Po finally reached up and patted the space next to him. The gesture didn't go unanswered and after a bit of a pause Tigress covered the distance between them slowly and confidently with an easy stride and closed composure. But it was all an act. Around Po it always was.

She settled down next to him, her muscles tired and Tigress wondered how they'd feel tomorrow night after eight hours of training and no sleep. But as she looked over at Po's goofy grin her spirit lightened. She would fret about what happened tomorrow when it happened, not a second earlier. Tonight, Tigress and Po were each others. Come what may.

_::_

Po wasn't looking for visitors; that was the whole reason he had decided to break out of sleeping courters in the middle of the night in the first place. To be alone. He had really just wanted to ponder over his thoughts, and as unmanly as it sounded his feelings. After all it had only been fourteen days and counting since the defeat of Shen, his crazy firework loving arch nemesis, and Po needed to desperately reconnect with himself. He had discovered his past, learned about his family, and even was told a bit about his future, but he had had no spare time to contemplate all of that until now. Some of it was super awesome, like how he had found Inner Peace, or rather how Inner Peace found him; and some of it just seriously hurt… like realizing the sacrifice his parents had made to keep him a part of this world. There were also other topics that left him puzzled as he poked through them as well; his training, the calligraphy lessons he was taking from Crane, the fight at Gongmen City, kung fu in general, and of course Tigress. With all this eating away at him, it wasn't a wonder why Po was crouched outside the front gate as he was trying to finally stumble over some peace and quiet.

But no matter how much he had his mind set on exploring the dark recesses of his mind, there was one distraction that never seemed to prick his nerves. Actually, "distraction" was insulting. The calm and confident personality that seeped out of Master Tigress was anything but distracting. Eye catching? Alluring? Inspiring? Without a doubt. Distraction? Never. It was safe to say that Po certainly wasn't disappointed when she had suddenly disrupted his self-help therapy session just moments ago. He wasn't very good at therapy anyways.

Po chanced yet another glance over his shoulder, eyes not seeming to want to leave Tigress' form anytime soon. She sat perched gracefully on the step beside him, her paws on either side of her as she looked out over the Valley, their home. She had changed lately, it was obvious to everyone, as she continued to become increasingly open and interactive, but Po knew that it was more than just her demeanor that had changed. Something deep down in the very essence of who she was had shifted, causing a ripple affect with every other part of her life. Tigress had always been mature, sometimes even over mature, but now she had grown… it was like she had become mature enough to know when to stop acting so mature all the time, if that made any sense.

It was as if Tigress had found her balance. She was still just as hardcore as ever, but now when she spoke she was more free, not wasting the time to pick and choose her words ever so carefully, and when she trained she paced herself for she knew that not everything can be accomplished through training. But Po's favorite part about this slightly different dimension of Tigress was the companion she had become to him. Tigress was always there when he needed her, she looked out for him, supplied endless advice, and in return she had even allowed him to do the same to her. Somehow or other the South China tiger and the domino panda had connected and formed a friendship.

It might have been the awkwardest friendship he had ever had, for neither of them was very good at communicating, but it was in their faults that they had truly drawn closer. Both not really knowing how to act or what to say and together they had learned... and were still learning… how to open up to each other. How to trust one another. It was a slow progress, but progress nonetheless.

Po knew Tigress felt the same way, or at least he was pretty sure she did, even though neither one of them said anything about their developing whatever-you-wanted-to-call-it aloud. They never voiced it, never spoke of it, and never even acknowledged to one another that it was there, but that was what made it so special. It was a secret, something hidden from the others, something that belonged to only her and him. It was something new and exciting because neither knew what to do with it or what it was.

The panda leaned forward, slouching even more than before and sighed into the air, he was uneasy. Not because of Tigress, but just because he had so many things bouncing around in his head, it had been distracting him lately, taking away from even his training. Po decided to ignore the thoughts for now and try to start up a conversation, Tigress was obviously sitting there for a reason, maybe she wanted to discuss something.

"So um… what's got you up this late?" Po asked as he broke the silence. He didn't even bother to glance over at her facial expressions; he knew how she was going to respond.

She eyed him quickly before examining her nails as if she didn't have a care in the world, then finally Tigress looked back calmly. "I could be asking you the same thing Dragon Warrior."

He called it, he had totally called it. "I knew you were going to say that," Po grinned briefly, "…but I asked you first."

Tigress' gaze narrowed, as it always did when she couldn't think up of a reason to refuse to answer his questions. Somewhere behind them Po could hear her tail sliding over the grass lazily, left to right, left to right. The barely audible pattern somehow soothed him. "I have developed a habit for late night strolls. I was just on my way back from the Pool of Sacred Tears."

Po nodded; it was just like her to deprive herself of sleep by taking a walk and picking exercise over slumber. "Cool… sounds very Tigress-like."

"I try," she shrugged with the hint of a smile.

"What are the walks for? Just to get away from all us Masters who aren't nearly as talented as you?"

That earned him another tiny flutter of a smile, making his grin widen. "Watch it panda," Tigress warned, golden eyes sparkling dangerously as she teased him. Suddenly, her gaze softened and became distant. "I'm not as vain as you may think I am."

"I was just kidding around," Po hastily responded, afraid he had insulted her accidentally. He lifted his big paw up to give her a good natured shove, and let it linger there on her shoulder for a moment. This made Tigress look over at him. "You're not vain." It was no more than a whisper, but she heard it nonetheless. Tigress gave him a curt nod, letting him know that she understood, and after realizing his fingers were still intertwined with her fur he pulled back quickly as if he was being burned. A blush rose to his cheeks, but Po shoved it off, glancing down at his feet. "So why do you really go for walks?"

Tigress was looking down at her lap as well as she thought about how to answer. "I enjoy… the solitude it offers. Tigers naturally like to remain alone; I can't shake my instinct. I like to think about things, and this gives me the chance to do that. To recollect on the day's events." Tigress brushed a paw over the grass beside her and glanced up at the moon high in the sky. "Also, I just really enjoy being out of doors."

"Good reasons," Po concluded. "Can't argue with any of that."

"What about you? Why are you up at this hour, Po?"

He shuttered the slightest bit at the way her voice spoke his name, it sounded so crisp, and so clear. Why was he up this late anyways? Po tried to put it in the simplest way possible, but failed when he stared back into her reassuring gaze, and it all came toppling out in a blur. "Well umm… you see, I kind of just wanted to… needed to… get some time to myself… to think about everything. I mean, come on, these past weeks have been crazy! An evil peacock, kung fu almost being destroyed, meeting Master Ox and Master Croc, me being pretty much exploded by a canon, the soothsayer, not to mention all the stairs I climbed, there's all those wolves we beat up too, and-"

"Finding out your parents sacrificed themselves to keep you alive," Tigress put in calmly, interrupting his rant he had been using to dodge around the main reason he was out here. She watched him knowingly, eyes giving off a slight nocturnal glow in the moonlight, as he stopped and froze. Tigress knew him too well.

"…yeah," Po admitted, picking up a pebble and twirling it around in his paw, "that too."

They sat in silence; Po trying to gather his thoughts and arrange them in sensible order, and Tigress waiting patiently for him to begin talking. After a moment, he turned so that he was completely facing her and folded his legs so that he was sitting Indian style. She paused, caught off guard, before slowly and hesitantly turning to face him as well with her legs folded in the same manner. Both Masters examined the other, and then Po sighed as he took the pebble that was still in his hand and threw it down the stone steps that led into the Valley with as much force as he could muster.

"Master Tigress… I-"

"My name is Tigress, Po."

He glanced up into her face. "What?"

She leaned forward ever so slightly, only an inch or so… but Po still noticed. He noticed everything about her. "Po you are my friend, there is no need for any of this "Master Tigress" formalities. With you I am Tigress, and that is all. Just as you are simply "Po" to me."

"Oh… alright," Po threw her a half smile; pleased she voiced their friendship was deep enough to forget the "Master" junk. Tigress returned the smile, making invisible feathers brush teasingly against his stomach, but at the same time putting him at ease. "… Er, Tigress... I," he sighed, closing his eyes. When they opened, his mind was a little clearer, "I don't know why I feel so… upset. I mean, I guess I have the right to after finding out about my family and all. But this isn't just anger or the feeling you get when you know you've lost something, it's more than that. I feel terrible; they lost their lives because I was unable to protect myself. I know I was only a cub, but still… maybe if I hadn't of even been there they would have been able to escape. They could've still been alive right now. If I was never born, then there would be no prophesy from the Soothsayer and Shen would never have gone on his panda-crazy rampage in the first place. Tigress, I just feel like somehow this is all my fault. It's all on me."

"Po," she said in a slightly scolding voice, but her features were full of something he had never seen before in her. Scratch that, he _had _seen that look once… it was the one she had given him after she had hugged him back in the Gongmen city prison. "You're feeling guilty, and your guilt would be okay, if it was reasonable, but it's not. You did nothing wrong. Nothing at all that could be considered a wrong-doing. You mustn't give into these thoughts that you are to blame, because you are only convicting yourself."

Heck. How was she so smart? Po leaned back and turned his head up to the sky. "I know, I know…. I get that, but it still doesn't make me feel any better. It's not my fault, I never had a say in any of this. I know that, but somewhere's inside of me I don't believe it."

Tigress had a puzzled expression on her face; her gaze loomed over him carefully. He could tell she was becoming frustrated with herself that she didn't understand what he meant. "Explain," she said after a moment.

"I…." He didn't really know how to explain it, and for a moment Po contemplated just shrugging it off and telling her it was no big deal. But if anyone was keen enough to grasp what he was trying to say it was Tigress. "It's like… kung fu. I know kung fu, you know kung fu, we all do. But it's not enough to know the patterns, kicks, and blocks. It's not about knowing the steps and how it works… the only way it's going to work for anyone is if they believe it will work. I believe in kung fu, I believe I can defend myself with it, and that's probably the only reason I'm any good at it. All the masters… they believe in what it can do. You believe in it… I've seen it in your face when you fight."

"Faith," Tigress answered simply, "having faith in what you believe in."

Po pointed at her, relieved she got the point of his lame analogy. "Yeah, you got it!" he flicked her knee cap through her black silk pants with his index finger as a congratulations and Tigress smirked at his over excited demeanor. "It's like that with what's bothering me. I know it's not my fault, but that's just because that's what everyone tells me… I don't actually believe it myself… Or have faith in it or whatever. You know?"

"I know," she responded, "and I think you're absurd."

Po's grin stopped short, and fell off his face. He gave her a questioning look as Tigress shook her head in amusement. "Po you're being irrational. You believe rice can be cooked in your stomach, for China's sake, why don't you believe the truth for once?"

"This is different…" Po defended, not really comprehending why he felt the slightest bit insulted at her last comment. Tigress meant no harm; but still it ate away at him. "This isn't a joke Tigress; this isn't rice we're talking about. It's my family, and my whole race. Is it really such a big deal to feel the tiniest bit guilty for bringing around their deaths? I swear, if they were all alive right now, and I had a second chance at protecting them… I'd give up everything for them. There's nothing I wouldn't sacrifice. I'd die for my people, but instead they ended up dying for me."

It was evident Tigress knew she had crossed a line; Po could see it on her face before she masked her emotions, yet again she crouched forwards. With a gentle touch, she placed her paw comfortingly over his; the sudden contact took him completely by surprise and he jerked as he glanced down at her hand in disbelief. Tigress took this the complete opposite, and thinking she had made him feel awkward she began to pull away, but Po wouldn't have it. In a desperate movement that they both noticed he reached out and took her paw, bringing it down so that their intertwined hands rested between them. She looked up at him, their eyes meeting, and each Master had no idea how that had transpired, but neither pulled away. Tigress simply seemed frozen and rooted in place, and Po was just deathly afraid his butt was about to be kicked.

Finally, she looked the other way. "I apologize… for what I said. I meant no harm, but I still shouldn't have voiced it aloud. My tongue has become too uncontrolled lately."

"No, Tigress seriously, don't worry about it," Po told her swiftly, scared she was going to turn back into the cold, and heavily guarded Master she had been. Before he could stop himself, he ran his thumb down the fur on her paw trying to console her. Tigress' stare jumped up to him again, and what they seen in each other mirrored themselves. They had no idea what was happening. Po considered murmuring an apology, but thought against it when he realized he'd just be lying. He wasn't sorry; the panda was actually quite enjoying this… if only he knew why.

Tigress was still watching him warily, shoulders tense and eyebrows arched. Her whole stature screamed defensive, and Po knew she wasn't very comfortable of the fact that they were sitting in the dark in the dead of night holding each others' paws, but since she wasn't pulling away he refused to let go. There was just something about Tigress that made _this_ feel all so natural, whatever _this _was, and Po didn't want to give it up just yet.

"Po, listen to me," Tigress stated after a long agonizing silence. It seemed almost as if she had returned to her normal self, her voice was smooth and collected and she wasn't looking at him like he was about to burst into flames. Had she forgotten they were holding hands?

"What?" He asked dumbly.

"I know how much you care for your people. They're your blood, it's only right that you hold them dear even though you've never met them. But Po… be very careful when you say you're willing to die for something; realize what it is you are saying when you tell others that you would sacrifice _anything_ for a cause. "Anything" can be more than you could ever imagine. Do you understand?"

"Loud and clear," he nodded, she was right of course. He had to be a hundred percent sure he always knew where his loyalties rested; never should he dedicate more than he would be willing to give. Po threw her a foolish smile, glad he had her to remind him when it was time to concentrate on the seriousness of life.

After a fleeting moment, Tigress pulled her hand out from his gently. It wasn't rough or chaste, but it was the kind of pull that told him she was done with the physical contact thing for now. She was never really very good at that avenue of friendship; touching and comforting was never her forte. Po was actually quite stunned she had lasted that long. Tigress turned back so that her hind legs were hanging over the stairs again as when they had first set down, and Po did the same, but he couldn't help but think that she seemed closer to him than before. He shook his head at his idiotic thoughts.

"You're wiser than I thought you were.'

That threw him off guard; Po glanced over at her confused. "Huh?"

Tigress didn't look back, her gaze was trained straight ahead towards the Valley, but Po could tell she wasn't looking at anything in particular. "You've grown, Po. You're not the same panda who showed up here seven mouths ago. You have accepted your role in the universe, and have gained much wisdom. You have changed."

"Is it a bad change?" Po questioned, suddenly afraid he was becoming someone foreign who Tigress didn't enjoy having for company, and someone he didn't know.

Tigress finally stared back at him, her movement shifting her just enough so that her fur near her shoulder brushed against him. Po felt a coldness run up his back. "Far from it, you're becoming a great warrior," Tigress told him, her voice unusually sincere, "and still remain to be an even greater friend."

Her gaze was haunting, enticing, and all he could do was stare back helplessly. "You're not so bad yourself," Po mumbled, not knowing what else to say.

"Thank you."

"For a feline, anyway."

"Take it back."

Po smirked, finding his funny bone again, "Sorry, can't, I'm not supposed to lie."

"Did you know that I can kill people with my index finger fifty-two different ways?" Tigress lulled, sounding like she was just trying to make conversation and not threaten his life. "Including pandas."

Po winced, "Ouch, okay, I give. I take it back."

"You're forgiven," she told him blandly, but her smile gave her away.

Suddenly, from the depts of his body, Po felt and heard a great gurgle escape out into the night. He clutched his stomach as Tigress folded her arms across her chest beside him. "I'm hungry,' he announced.

"I've noticed,' Tigress noted with a shake of her head, "I'm surprised Shifu didn't notice too from the whole other side of the palace."

"Sound sleeper."

"Ah, I see."

Both companions locked gazes; Tigress with her classic smirk and unruly face, and Po with his plastered on smile and comical stare. He broke eye contact as a long drawn out yawn worked its way from his mouth and into the air. Tigress chuckled while Po blinked as he tried to remain focused. "I think I can sleep now," he announced.

Po watched as she jumped with extreme grace to her feet within seconds, and reached back down to help him up. "Walk me to my courters, oh mighty Dragon Warrior?" Her teasing made him snort, as he seized her arm and was hauled to his feet.

"No fears, m'lady! Po Ping's here." He bowed low and held out his arm like a gentleman for her to loop hers through. He was flabbergasted when she actually did. Tigress' arm slid easily into his, and somehow Po managed not to miss a single beat as he led her back into the gated Jade Palace. They kept up the charade the whole time; Po guiding them as he made the most bizarre comments he could think of, and Tigress followed with a smirk, putting in a word here and there, and dealing with his nonsense.

"I fought a wild bore with my bare hands once, killed him in thirty seconds. Oh, what a nice brunch we had that day I can assure you, m'lady." Po babbled enjoying the role of a narcissistic prince he was making for himself. "Did you know that my fur is currency in some parts of China? Oh yes, its silk texture is incomparable!"

"My hero," Tigress muttered with a roll of her scarlet eyes, she looked relieved to see that they had reached the sleeping courters' main door.

Po opened the bamboo door and held it for her, bowed again, even lower this time. "Until we meet again, m'lady."

"Which doesn't have to be soon or even in the near future, right?" Tigress asked, acting desperate to disappear.

Po glanced up, seeing her amused features, as she stood there with her hands on her hips. He pouted, "I thought I made a good prince…"

Her eyebrows shot up as she glared at him incredulously. "I'm very thankful you're not of royal birth, panda."

"Why? Because I'd be stuck up, annoying, and a brat?"

"That," Tigress agreed with a nod, "And because you'd also be pompous, disrespectful, egotistical, boastful, and insolent… and because if you were a royal I, and the rest of the five, wouldn't get to have you here."

By the time Po came to a conclusion on what she'd thrown in with that last bit, Tigress had shot him a smug look and was already halfway down the hall on her way to her respective room. He hurried after her, trying to catch her but avoid the dreadful squeaking floorboards all at the same time. Holding his breath, and trying with all his might not to wake the others Po made slow process compared to Tigress who was light enough that she could walk swiftly down the corridor no problem. Po reached her room just as she was about to enter and vanish from view.

"Tigress,' Po called gently, stopping her short. She hesitated before pivoting costively back to look at him. The candles lit to illuminate the darkened hallway during the night flickered off her irises as he gazed at her in fascination. The shadows blended with the black stripes, the light with the orange fur, and Po had never seen Tigress look so mysterious and tantalizing before in his life. Her eyes held him in place as the yellow specks amidst the dark orange reminded him briefly of a sunset.

"Po?" she asked, interrupting his examination. She had no doubt noticed him staring.

"Uhhhh…" _Get a hold of yourself buddy, you're over tired, and Tigress wants to sleep. She's also way out of your league so why do you even bother looking at her like that? _He lectured himself quickly, knowing the longer he stood there the more awkward it was all becoming. Tigress was already looking at him like he'd sprouted another head. "I… ugh, just wanted to… tell you … that y-… goodnight." Po caught himself before he made a grave mistake, he sighed. "Just wanted to say good night."

Tigress gave him a curt nod, "good night." She turned her back to him again, and took a step inside her room.

"Tigress!" The words were out before he could stop himself.

"What is it, Po?

He shuffled his feet, and took a breath. "I'd die for you,' he confessed, earning him a bewildered look from the tiger standing opposite him.

"What?"

Po rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment. "You know how you said to be sure before you choose what you'd be willing to risk everything for?

"Yes." Her voice held no emotion, it scared him.

"Well, I thought about it," Po locked eyes with her, staring dead straight into her face, "and I'd die for you in a heartbeat."

Tigress didn't move, didn't react, and thankfully didn't hit him aside the head. However, in some ways it was more terrifying when she stood absolutely still than if she attacked him. At long last, when Po started to believe she had turned into a statue, Tigress' shoulders slumped and to his wonder she placed her hands together and bowed in front of him. When she came back up to face him, Po could see the hint of a smile on her face.

"It is a great honor to be that important to somebody,' she told him quietly, "I promise you it's not something I take lightly."

"That's good, because it's not something I said lightly," Po responded after a moment.

Tigress gazed back at him, backing into her room for the third time. She leaned against the wall, and placed a paw on the sliding door. Her smile was contagious, and Po found himself smiling back like a mad man. "Good night, Po."

"Night Tigress."

There was a silence, and then Po decided enough had been said. He walked over to his room and stepped inside. "I'd die for you too you know," A soft velvety voice said uncertainly from behind him, he glanced over his shoulder to see Tigress standing there with her door still slightly agar. "…in a heartbeat."

Both Masters remained rooted in place, there was no one else besides them. Nothing else existed besides their friendship and their care for one another. Po looked at Tigress, and Tigress looked at Po. After a few precious seconds, they nodded to each other and without another word, or another sound two bedroom doors closed firmly. Po's light went out first, and minutes later Tigress' did as well, but neither slept a wink that night.

* * *

><p><em>La Fin... pour maintenant. <em>**Let me know what you guys think! I'm still open to ideas. Arn't Tigress and Po just so awkward that it pulls a heartstring? That's what I thought when I seen the second movie. :) Anways, its one in the morning, school's tomorrow, and I need sleep! **

**Goodnight world!**


	3. The Threat

**I'm BAAAACKKKK! (Now would be the time to run and hide.) **

**So, here is chapter two... I must apologize for the extremely long, long, long, long wait. I write when I have time, which hasn't been very often lately... but I can tell you now that while the updates may sometimes be slow they will come. The only way they wouldn't is if something serious happened and I decided I couldn't continue, but if that ever happened i'd announce it and put this story up for adpotion. **

**Okay... I'm super pumped about this fic, I have it planned out on paper and everything! Ch. 2 didn't exactly turn out as planned, the part about **SPOILER*** Oogway wasn't really part of my initial plan, but I though it was too good to leave out. So I shifted things around a bit. There's a bunch of filler in this chapter, so I apologize for that, but I still needed to develope the characters a bit more, especially Tigress. Next chappie we're going action! Be prepared. **

****SPOILER** Also, there is a meditation sequence whe**

**re Tigress is picturing memories she lived in her head and she's watching herself live out those memories. I hope this section isn't confusing, because I think that maybe at one part there's like three Tigress' going on. Lol, so if you have any ideas about how to describe those few pages better let me know. Always open for improvements! **

**I also want to take the time to thank God for allowing me to write this story so far, and the ability He's given me to write. I pray that He'll guide me to know when is the time to work on this fic and when is the time to actually live my life. I'm really bad at telling the difference. I pray for determination, patience, and discipline. **

_**AND WITHOUT FURTHER ADO... LETS GET ON TO CHAPTER TWO! **_**He he, I made a funny. :)**

* * *

><p>Chapter 2: A Threat<p>

Po's foot collided with Tigress' paw, a brilliant resounding thud dulled the room at the impact, but neither Master said anything… except maybe a slight whimper from the panda. It was nearing mid afternoon and the day had been spent training. Viper and Crane were battling on the Jade Tortoise, Monkey flipped through the hoops overhead, and Mantis was going through the motions of scroll 398. Shifu had left after dinner to meditate somewhere up the mountain and hadn't been heard of since, but that wasn't anything unusual. That had left Tigress and Po as sparring partners, not that they were complaining. Ever since Shen, Po hadn't shrunk at the thought of battling the tiger and Tigress had since treated him with almost half the ferocity as she did before.

He wasn't her private punching bag any longer, and after noticing the difference in her he had gained confidence and had become quite a formidable opponent. Po was strong and when he paced himself had incredible endurance. They had fought each other constantly in the weeks since Shen's attack, and were now so in tune with the other's fighting technique that to those who observed the sparring it looked like one big complicatedly choreographed dance. The aggressive and controlled style of Tigress somehow fit with Po's own made-up half panda, half dragon kung fu perfectly.

Po recovered from Tigress's block to his scissor kick and backed away, keeping his footwork light and neat as he created some distance between himself and the tiger. She watched him tactically, eyes alert and responding to every move he made, even if it was just an intake of breath.

"Knees bent, Po," she directed, noticing his rigid legs. This fight had been going for quite awhile, and both were reaching the end of their stamina which made them slightly more sloppy than usual. Tigress waited for Po to get back into his proper defensive stance before doing anything drastic; he wiped his brow as her tail twitched with anticipation.

When she knew he was ready Tigress lunged forwards. She faked right before twirling her body round in milli-seconds and attacking on the left with a lightning quick change in position. Po, however, had sensed this coming and without missing a beat he leaned his top half back to narrowly miss Tigress's swinging paw.

"Good," she praised.

Po didn't take the time to absorb her words; he was in destroy-the-tiger-mode and with a loud cry retaliated by heaving his body towards her. "Feel the thunda!"

Tigress was forced to take to the air to avoid Po's sudden outburst, and with a light grunt sprung upwards as he landed a punch to where she had been just moments ago. She flipped with precision high over his head and touched down directly behind him in a crouch. Po swirled around to meet her, and they paused for a fleeting moment before both lashed out at the other. The sparring partners met with a fury of kicks, blocks, and punches; it was at such a speed that the other four masters stopped their own training briefly to watch the spectacle.

"Tigress isn't showing any mercy today," Monkey hooted from where he hung on the rings by his tail.

Viper tilted her head to the side with keen eyes as she looked on. "Yes, but Po has good ground, he's not giving an inch." Crane nodded his agreement from where he stood beside her.

Mantis snorted as Po landed a quick blow to Tigress' side, "He's really putting it to her! Po might actually have a chance today."

The other three glanced at Mantis as if he was losing his mind, and his kung fu judgement. Po never won against Tigress… no one ever won against Tigress. "Nah…," Monkey, Viper, and Crane all mumbled at the same time. There was no way Po was taking the fight today; he was good, really, really good, but the tiger had always been better.

Tigress and Po continued on, oblivious to their bystanders. The fight was nearing the end; both could feel it, but both refused to back down. Adrenaline was coursing through Po, and although it made him quicker and stronger, it also made concentrating more difficult. Tigress was on one side and then the other, unleashing moves in every direction, but he didn't want to be the one playing the defensive this time and so he pushed himself even farther as he kept up with her pace. They twirled and whirled around each other as Po took part in Tigress' deadly dance. Their eyes following every move the other made and staring intently into the other's gaze as the steps became harder and more complex.

_Step, punch, block, back up, duck, kick, punch left, block, punch right. _Po repeated the steps he took in his head as long as he possibly could, until finally he just gave up with that and let his body react at will. They fought like magnets that were constantly repelling and attracting; there would be times when several Master Rhinos (may he rest in peace) could fit easily in the distance between them, and then moments later they could be so close Po would feel Tigress' fur brush against his as she moved. It was electrifying, he had never trained with anyone quite like this, and as much as Po wanted to keep fighting epically with the tiger for all eternity, he was also getting seriously drained. If something didn't happen soon, Tigress was going to run him dry and she'd end up the winner yet again.

Po decided that if Tigress was a real enemy the easiest way to stop her would be to simply put her unconscious, and the easiest way to do that was pressure points. Shifu had taught him the weak areas in many animal forms; Mantis had two, Crane had three, Viper had five, he had one, and Tigress and Monkey both had four. Po picked the quickest one to reach and lashed out towards her. Tigress side stepped him and tried to jump over him yet again, but he was having none of it. With a swift hand he grabbed a hold of the only part he could reach, her tail, and dragged her back towards the ground; she hadn't been expecting that and broke the fall with a roll. Once she was back on her feet she gave him a slight growl showing her teeth, Po knew he hadn't made the smartest move ever. From behind, Mantis whistled.

"That was dirty, even for you, Po," she snapped, ears half flattened with annoyance as she paced back and forth.

Her breathing was heavier than usual, and he realized he wasn't the only one getting tired. Tigress was running out of steam. "Haven't you heard? Dirty fighting still counts!" Po taunted, before rushing back into the fight.

If he wanted to get her pressure point, he knew he had to get as close as possible. Po dodged a head kick, and tried to spin back to avoid a hit to the stomach but Tigress stepped down hard on his foot, keeping him pinned in place. Her fist collided with him just above his liver and Po felt the air gush out of him. Gasping for breath he stared at her in disbelief.

"Reap what you sow," she informed, her face as serious as ever, but those golden eyes of hers were laughing at him.

Po had to admit he got what he deserved.

He sighed, knowing this was never going to end. Po stood up straight and stepped back into his stance, he motioned for Tigress to keep going and she smirked. She pulled into her own stance, arms up and feet apart. After a second of hesitation they were back at it yet again, each running forwards and meeting in the middle. Po fought his heart out, but after receiving one, two, three blows to the head he was getting fed up. One last hit to his ribs did him in, and Po launched out at Tigress with arms outstretched and a desperate battle cry.

"HI-YAH!"

"What the-," Tigress began before Po caught her around the waist and she fell to the ground in his tackle. They tumbled to a stop in a giant mess of arms and legs and bodies. "PO!" She shouted, outraged that he had the nerve to pull such a stunt.

_::_

He grinned down at her sheepishly from where he was on top of her. "Gotcha…" he murmured as Tigress realized after a hazy moment that both his index fingers were pressed against her temples lightly, indicating he had found her pressure points. The fight was over. Po had won.

Tigress let the back of her head drop to the floor in defeat; she was more out of breath than she'd been in a long awhile. He was watching her carefully, and she knew he was waiting for her approval, he knew she was the judge of their spars and she called the shots. Tigress was about to open her mouth and announce that he had cheated and therefore she was the rightful winner, but something stopped her. She didn't know exactly what it was, but it had something to do with his eyes and the way they were staring at her. It was…. Captivating.

Her stupor was snapped in two by a clear of the throat coming from off to her left. Tigress' ears swivelled in that direction, her head accompanying it moments later, and Po turned to see as well. The rest of the Furious Five were watching them in silence. Monkey hung from a loop overhead, Mantis was perched on Crane's shoulder, and Viper was smirking at her and Po as if they had both just toppled down the Ten Thousand Steps. For the briefest second she wondered why in China were they gazing at them that way… then it hit her. Po was still tangled up with her. They were still on the ground and she hadn't done anything about it.

Oh.

Tigress glanced back up at Po to find he was doing the same to her, and just like that they were scrambling slightly awkwardly to their feet. She moved her tail right before Po stepped on top of it in his confusion and they both took several tiny paces away from each other. Mantis was fighting to contain a laugh, and she glared at him icily as she noticed Po blush cherry red off to her right.

Tigress had to wonder what had just happened.

"… Nice fight guys." Viper finally announced, breaking the quiet that had ensued.

Even though his face was now composed, Mantis' arched eyebrows told her he was far from over what had transpired. "Heh, yeah Po, you really _laid_ it on her."

Tigress growled deeply with warning at the insect's crud remark while Viper thwacked him lightly with the tip of her tail. "Mantis!" Po hissed with embarrassment.

"Just saying," Mantis shrugged and turned towards Monkey. "Where are those almond cookies? I'm starving."

"Like I'd tell you," Monkey said, rolling his eyes.

Crane started walking towards the training room doors, taking Mantis with him. "Come on, I'll make some tofu, you guys want any?"

Monkey and Viper nodded simultaneously as Monkey swung down to the ground and leaped out of the room. Viper glanced back questionably at the two of them, "Po? Ti? Are you coming?"

Tigress shook her head before she could stop herself, even though her stomach complained to her. "I'll clean," she said simply, turning back and walking over to the scrolls Mantis had left strewn across the far side of the room.

"I'll help her, I guess." Po's response floated up to her ears and made the faintest of smiles form on her lips as her back was turned to them.

Without looking up, Tigress heard the door open as Viper slithered out and before it closed she could clearly hear Mantis' voice drifting from the hallway. "Seriously? Tofu? Crane, your tofu is the worst; I'd rather eat my own fist!" And then the door shut closed from the wind blowing in easily through the open window and the rest of the conversation was drowned out.

Bending down to snatch two or three scrolls off the floor, Tigress swore to herself to give the little Master a piece of her mind later on, and a lesson on tidying up after himself. Suddenly, Po came into view and he leaned down beside her to pick up the mess. She knew very well that Po never missed a meal, and even though he could always catch up on eating later she also knew that staying behind to help her out was a sacrifice for him. It pleased her more than she'd like to admit that he was willing to make such a sacrifice for her. Tigress sighed and stood; she walked leisurely over to a shelf on the wall and rolled each scroll up neatly before placing them on it. Po followed close behind her with both arms full.

"…so," he began after a long moment, "did I win?"

Tigress flashed him a smirk as she took a few of the scrolls from his grasp. "What do you think?"

Po grinned, shoving his shoulder against hers lightly, "Well if it was up to me, I'd say I totally dominated."

"Really?" she asked, giving away nothing as she continued stacking. Her gaze found the Dragon Warrior and examined him as he watched her. He was staring at her again; she had caught him doing it more often during the last few weeks, especially last night when they were outside, but she let it go. After all, how could she judge when she had found herself doing the same? Tigress had caught herself glancing back at him when they were with the others; she told herself she was just checking on him, that she was just making sure he was having a good time, and that he was safe. But now… Tigress wasn't so sure. His emerald eyes held her in place and made her wonder if she'd ever met someone as open to the world as Po was. His gaze was clear and bright, and completely trained on her. Tigress had never felt as important to someone as she felt with Po, she mattered to him. It was plainly visible, and made her interactions with him feel different than with anyone else.

She had always pondered what it would be like to have a true faithful friend who understood her more than any other. Now she knew.

Tigress looked away and tried to focus back on the scrolls, looking at Po was making her dizzy. As much as she loved the feelings she got from him, she hated being weak and so susceptible to such things as well. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Po's gentle stare still trained on her.

"I wouldn't say you dominated…" Tigress said slowly, admitting defeat and breaking him out of his trance. "That tackle was completely unnecessary, but I must admit that you fought hard… and if anything deserve this _one_ victory. Congratulations." It took him three full seconds to actually grasp her words- she counted- and found that his not-all-there state of mind was mildly charming. Mildly.

"Booya!" Po exclaimed, fist pumping the air when he realized what she had said and in the process he let all the scrolls he was holding fall to the ground. Tigress placed her hands on her hips as she observed his victory "dance", the scrolls tumbled and rolled all around them. They became caught up between Po's feet as he spun in a circle, and Tigress' arms shot out protectively, too much so for her liking, as he wavered on the spot and almost tripped over them. After a moment he regained his balance and she let her arms drop to her sides limply as Po turned towards her with a cocky smile. "How does it feel to have your undefeated reputation squandered by a fat panda?"

Tigress would have been enraged if any of the others had beaten her and then had the stupidity to brag about it, but somehow with Po all she managed to get out was an aggravated eye roll. "Po," she spoke coolly, in that Master like manner she was so good at. "First of all, "squandered" is not the word I would use, because as far as I'm concerned you barely won at all. It was simply me getting, as you'd put it, "ripped off" from your desperate attempts of trying to prove you can beat me. Secondly, don't you dare fight dirty with me again or absolutely no compassion will be shown. And thirdly, you are not "fat". You are a panda, weighing more than other species is just part of the expectations of your race. It's perfectly normal to have an appetite like the one you possess. And I think we all would admit that a Po who doesn't eat four breakfasts isn't really Po at all. Don't let me hear you refer to yourself as overweight again."

Po stood speechless for a few seconds, obviously not expecting her to say any of those things, but when a pleased look finally took over his features Tigress knew she hadn't stepped out of line. "Thanks, Tigress," Po said quietly, his voice sincere as he stared back at her with what she thought humbly was undeserved admiration. Why did he believe she was worthy of a look even close to the one he was giving her?

"Let's get these scrolls in order," she told him, pointing to the kung fu patterns strewn across their feet, but her voice missed that commanding tone it usually held. Po gave a quick nod and then crouched low to gather them up and she bent down beside him. Together they placed the remaining scrolls into a semi neat pile. Their gazes met occasionally and each time Tigress found that Po was grinning at her and she wasn't fighting to refrain from smiling lightly back in return. When the scrolls had been straightened out and as neat as the two of them were willing to make it she reached out to take them in her arms, ready to let Po know he could go fetch his food now. But before Tigress could even open her mouth, the panda had brushed her hands away and had already grabbed the stack of scrolls from her.

"Po," she protested while he wobbled to his feet, the pile was just high enough that it was difficult for him to see where he was walking.

"Hmph, I got it, Tigress, don't worry about it." She watched and walked alongside him, snatching any loose scrolls that slide off the top of the others before they could hit the ground. Po made it to the shelves and unceremonially dumped them onto the middle one.

"Skadoosh." He turned happily back towards her, and found she was only inches away from him. Tigress froze as Po's eyes expanded; she hadn't thought she had been this close. What was wrong with her, and where was her judgement? Tigress stepped back in one swift movement; gaze turned anywhere but on him as anger bubbled inside her at her lack of control. An uncomfortable silence ensued.

"… I suppose we should get you to the dinning hall," Tigress stated when she finally could look back up at him with her common emotionless stare. The lack of emotion didn't last very long, however, as she noticed Po had completely zoned out and was staring straight at her, but it was obvious he wasn't focusing on her. His mouth was open slightly; jaw hanging loosely and his eyes were staring ahead with disbelief. Something Tigress couldn't categorize shone on Po's face and was left unhidden. The closest thing she could compare it to was longing, and as she did so it sent the smallest of chills down the skin on the back of her neck, making the fur stand on end. And a smile crept into her features.

Noticing her smirking at him, Po snapped out of his daze and his eyes jumped back into focus-mode. "What? What did you say?"

Tigress sighed, trying to sound fed up, but to no avail. She pointed towards the door, "Come on, the room is presentable, we can go to the dinning hall with the others."

"Oh, yeah. Right. Okay…" They stood there awkwardly for a brief moment, waiting to see who would make the first move. Po shifted from one foot to another, she allowed her tail to sway patiently, and finally after thinking he was depending on her –as if he needed her to walk a hundred feet to the dinning hall- she watched Po motion towards the solid oak door. "Ladies first…" Po mumbled humbly, scratching an itch behind his ear.

Tigress inclined her head in understanding with another smirk, feeling strangely flattered at his chivalry as she started across the room. Po was at her heels; her acute senses could easily pick up on his hot breath blowing on her back. Suddenly the warm air left for a fleeting second and she knew even without checking that he was glancing back warily at the scrolls they had stacked; half expecting them to fall off the shelf and unroll over the floor all over again. Tigress looked behind her shoulder and confirmed her suspicions.

Po jumped around her when they reached the door and pulled it open for her, his eyes avoiding her face. Tigress ignored this display and continued on, never slowing or increasing the pace as his lumbered footsteps echoed up and down the walls in the narrow hallway. His stomach growled loudly and Tigress heard a slight moan come from his mouth. Po's biggest weakness' was and always will be his love for his friends, and his stomach. But she knew that as Shifu had showed them, even someone's greatest defect can be used for their benefit. It was Po's hunger and determination to feed that hunger that their Master used to train him to defeat Tai Lung. Same as when her anger was controlled and used with extreme precision and care Tigress could defeat any kung fu master who dared cross her path. She had yet to meet someone who was at her same skill level that played for the opposite team. Tai Lung of course being an exception for he hadn't always been bent on destroying the world. Tigress prayed silently that they would never meet someone she couldn't take down in a hands on hands duel, as long as she could come out the victor, her family -Po and the others- would be safe. She could protect them.

Five meters from the kitchen entry way Tigress stopped short without so much as a signal to the panda behind her. He almost ran her over, in fact he did. Po's stomach hit into her and she flew forwards two or three feet before quickly regaining her balance. "Oop," Po apologized with a wince as she turned to him, "my bad."

Tigress waved his words away with her paw, already focused on her next task. "It was my fault, Po, I forgot to meditate by the Moon Pool." The Moon Pool was a wide basin located in the Hall of Warriors, she had no sweet clue why it was even dubbed "a pool", but she didn't judge the elders and their name giving. Said pool was created over nine hundred years prior to her birth, when the Emperor of China had ordered the construction of the Hall of Warriors along with the entire Jade Palace in honour of Master Oogway for his discovery of Kung Fu. The Moon Pool was the first object in the Hall, later accompanied by the Dragon Warrior scroll. She could still vividly recall sitting around the pool with Master Shifu and Oogway as Oogway would tell of how a sufficiently enlightened being could see problems unravel and answers be given when they stared into the still water. Tigress herself was sceptical about all of this, not that she doubted the previous Grand Master, but she believed that answers should be earned, not given.

Po nodded, he knew that Tigress meditated by the pool every second day before she could eat her dinner, in fact he had been there when Shifu had given her the order to do so. It had been the third day after Shen had been blown to smithereens, and they were already lined up outside their respective rooms waiting for their Master's orders. He hadn't made it seem unnatural, just said for her to do so until he told her she could cease. Shifu never mentioned it again since then, and so Tigress was left to believe she was still bound to the task.

"Oh, yeah, I totally forgot you do that," Po agreed watching her as she started to retrace her steps down the hallway to the exit. "Couldn't you, like, skip it for today since we're already late for lunch and everything? You're going to have to inhale your food when you get back or you'll miss the next part of training."

Tigress shook her head, "Meditating by the pool is something I agreed on with Shifu, and since then it is just as important as any other piece of my day. I must go; save me a few dumplings, will you?"

She was reaching the opposite end of the corridor when she thought it odd that she hadn't heard Po's pounding feet go into the kitchen. Surely her ears would have picked up on it. Tigress halted and took a look back behind her to see Po still rooted in the same position she had left him in, the only difference was that now he was twiddling with his thumbs uneasily.

Tigress motioned to the kitchen, thoughts on her other fellow Masters. "You must know by now, Po that they aren't going to bite you."

He snorted, grinning back at her brightly… she had meant to insult him, but if the panda took her words as playful banter then so be it, he was too innocent to notice. Tigress understood that even if Po knew which of her phrases were teasing and which were meant to sting he'd still simply play along with it and chuckle. Nothing fazed Po. His rough edges were so round they hardly even existed, and hers… well, hers were sharp enough to slice through steel. However, slowly they were becoming more and more dull, partially due to her black and white friend of course.

Po played with his fingers again and fiddled with a loop on his pants, his nervousness not going unnoticed for a mere second. "Actually…" he began, looking back up at her, "I'm not really that hungry… and I was thinking maybe I could come with you…" As if on cue, Po's torso grumbled in protest, very much displeased at his choice.

"Not _that _hungry?" Tigress questioned as she found it nigh impossible to keep her face set in a straight stare.

"Well… you know," he cleared his throat, "it can wait for a little while longer."

Po was starving inside; she knew that for a fact. He hadn't eaten since breakfast and for him, after training for four hours, that was an extremely long time to go without food. Why, even she was somewhat looking forward to getting done her meditation, and enjoying a large bowl filled to the brim with dumplings and whatever else lay just beyond the kitchen entryway. However… he had offered to come. Tigress did the calculation in her head silently, contemplating it to herself, and then turned away from him as she marched out the exit, but not before throwing one last sentence over her shoulder. "If you would rather starve yourself than partake in lunch that's entirely up to you, no one is going to stop you."

Tigress kept walking even though her curiosity wanted desperately to chance a glance and see if Po was going to follow her or not. She hadn't noticed in the slightest that she was holding her breath until she heard scurrying feet coming after her, following close behind. Realizing he was going to join her Tigress breathed deep with an out of place sense of contentment.

Po picked up on this act and took her sigh the wrong way. "I don't have to come if you don't w-"

"Come." She spoke before she could contain it; his lack of words at this made her blush unnoticeably. "… Meditating alone becomes boring every once in a while."

Tigress looked over to see Po smiling at her right hand side, that stupidly boyish smile of his. The goofy one. Her favourite….

"Cool," he mumbled, and they made their way to the Hall of Warriors.

_::_

"_Meditation is an act of discipline. Of patients; of waiting and expecting nothing. When we meditate we are not searching desperately for the "whys" and "hows" of our questions, we are simply letting go. When we do this, when you learn to sit in the stillness and listen to nothing but the beating of your own heart in your chest, then and only then shall you receive what you are searching for. Do you understand, young one?" _

"_Yes, Master Shifu." _

"BANG!"

"…Oh crap…"

Tigress' eyes snapped open in a squinty stare as she was torn from the inner sanctums of her mind, and memories long ago lived out. Her eyes rolled back in her head in annoyance as she watched the panda hurriedly snatch the green glowing Sword of Heroes off the ground. A sword presumably so sharp it was capable of cutting a person by simply looking directly at it. Po grabbed the weapon by its banded handle and averted his gaze as he placed it back on its proper stand. He whirled around to Tigress to find her staring at him intently; she allowed a flicker of irritation to pass across her stern face. This was the second interruption in ten minutes.

"Po," she started, closing her eyes and breathing deeply as she tried to sink back into the state she had been in moments before. "perhaps you should-"

"Meditate too? Awesome idea," Po interrupted as he made his way up to the Moon Pool and plopped down into a heap beside her.

Tigress examined him briefly from the corner of her eye before closing them once more. It wasn't exactly what she was going to suggest, but if it kept him immobile then why not? "As long as you can refrain from moving."

"Psh, c'mon Tigress, I can sit here and meditate all day. It's not like I have A.D.H.D or anything."

"_I'm not so sure about that…" _But she bit her tongue and held it in, becoming as still as a rock once again. Her mind began to flutter away from the present as the panda became a mere buzzing thought at the back of her head, until she let go completely and he was gone. The beginning feeling of meditation had always made Tigress uncomfortable; in order to slip into the inner self you had to release your hold and control on your mind, and losing control was something Tigress had been wary of since… well, since Bao Gu. But once your hold was released you drifted off, like dropping a paddle and instead of directing yourself you simply decide to follow the current.

Tigress was barely aware of her surroundings, she had forgotten the fact she was still sitting in the Hall of Warriors. She waited patiently, sensing the tip of the iceberg that was peace. She hadn't reached total inner peace yet, but could still feel the waterfall of stillness that calmed her restless soul. Deep inside her mind she hummed in contentment, it was the only place she allowed herself to purr anymore. Tigress felt the inky blackness of the back of her eyelids surround her, pressing in on her as her breathing slowed and she had a vague sense of sweet still security. Her mind would always be hers; it was something no one could steal or rip away from her iron grasp. Even if, kung fu forbid it, every good thing in her life was lost she'd still have her mind, and in her mind the memories that made those good things live on inside of her.

Speaking of memories… the one that had faded with Po's interruption began to reform in front of her. As clear as the day it transpired she could see Shifu in the lotus flower position, he had on a rustic cloak that flowed around him, and he was much younger than now. His face was hard and firm as this was after Tai Lung's betrayal, but his eyes still held a warm glow as he watched the small orange and black ball of fur in front of him. A tiny Tigress sat before him, bodily trying with all her might to mimic her Master in every way possible. She looked determined, and at the same time frightened that she would fail whatever he was asking of her. Neither one of them seemed aware that Tigress was watching from off to one side, she stood silently as the cub version of herself squirmed in her place and Shifu directed her to remain still.

Shifu placed Tigress' paws on the tops of her knees, and slid his finger down her face, closing her wide scarlet eyes. _"You must relax Tigress, feel the solid ground beneath you, and sense the energy in the air. That's it, breathe deeply. Yes, this is where you belong, there is nothing to fret over…" _

"_Yes Master," _The cub mumbled, sounding much calmer than before. Tigress watched herself as the little girl's breathing became more and more drawn out. That was her first time at attempting meditation.

"You were always a natural at those kinds of practises…"

Tigress jumped at the strangely familiar voice, and swivelled around to see none other than a tired aging turtle standing behind her, leaning heavily on his cane. The cane Master Shifu now possessed.

"…Master Oogway?" Tigress murmured in disbelief. How was this possible? This was her memory, Oogway had never been a part of this moment, but yet here he was, looking the same as she had last seen him. And it seemed that he could see her unlike Shifu and the cub Tigress who were still over to her left in the middle of their session. Oogway was staring directly at her; his gentle blue eyes sparkled with childishness. Tigress felt a slight nervous tingling… she had heard that some beings could invade others' heads and steal their most precious thoughts. They could gain information about their foes that would allow them to overcome them. This could be a disguise; someone could be breaking into her mind. Tigress started to pull herself back into consciousness in panic and the memory blurred slightly as she did so. But suddenly Oogway's hand shot up and as she had never dared to disobey the Grand Master before in her life she ceased her fighting. The memory regained its focus and Oogway smiled over at her warmly.

"Ah, Tigress, always the defensive one," his cane clacked on the ground as he came closer, his gaze washing over her features wistfully. "It is good to see you again, my student, how much you have changed since we last spoke."

He reached out, green fingers outstretching towards her and Tigress winced, unable to pull away. Oogway's rough fingertips grazed the fur lightly overtop of her right brow, his touch relaxed and friendly as it had always been. She found her body release some tension in this alternate reality she had unknowingly created for herself as she remembered this is what Master Oogway had often done when she was younger and in between her fits of rage. He'd stroke her forehead, tell her the future will be unstable, but destiny will be kind. Her eyes closed briefly at his touch, this truly was the Grand Master.

"How is this possible, Master?" Tigress asked in a whisper, half expecting that when she snapped her eyes back opened the turtle would be gone as quickly as he had come. But Oogway was still there.

He retracted his arm and held onto the carved staff with both hands, ever smiling. "It does not matter; you need only know that I am here and that I have a message for you."

She waited for him to continue. When he remained silent she stepped closer to him, "A message?"

Oogway nodded, but was no longer looking directly at her; his gaze had turned to her memory. He watched silently as Shifu and the young Tigress sat still together, both deep in their respective meditations. "This is an important memory of yours, I can sense that by the expression on your face… but it is not the most important, is it."

The last part was a statement, not a question. Tigress eyed him carefully, already knowing what he was going to ask next, and afraid to show him the answer. But as she examined his features she could tell he already knew what it was.

"What is your most important memory, Tigress?" he asked gently, looking at her curiously with that trustful gaze she knew so well.

Without responding, Tigress turned back to Shifu and her young self and watched as she willed them to fade away into inky blackness, leaving just her and Oogway standing there. Just when everything had turned pictureless around them a haze spread over, covering them with hues and colors. The colors separated, melding into their own shapes and all together everything formed a different scene. Tigress watched as Oogway peered around, observing their new surroundings with interest. They were standing on a plank facing a giant city with tall yellowing buildings and people crowding the streets. The citizens were staring at a heap of broken battle ships in the middle of their harbour, their masts that once stretched high up into the sky had fallen on the main deck, plunging some parts of the ships underwater; the deep blue water was lapping up against the vessels, and above the sky was dark and dreary.

"Gongmen City Harbour…." Oogway voiced aloud in wonder as his head swivelled towards her questioningly. Tigress nodded, her eyes looking ahead at the ships still afloat.

There on the middle ship stood five beings, a snake, a bug, a bird, a monkey, and a small red panda, they too seemed to be in shock along with the rest of the people flooding the shore line. Their faces mirroring disbelief and relief all at the same moment, but Tigress wasn't staring at them. No, she was watching the other individual who was on the same ship, but more off to the right. She felt Oogway follow her gaze and stare with her as they watched the lone female tiger crouch and lean forwards into the water. She grabbed something hidden by the side of the ship and suddenly hauled as a soaking wet, shaken looking, panda bear came toppling over the side and into view. He stumbled a little as his feet hit dry ground, but then regained his balance, his green eyes met those of the tiger now standing beside him and he smiled sheepishly at her.

Tigress watched silently as the present day version of herself stood next to Po, her face looked extremely light and joyful, but there was something strange in her eyes. An almost insignificant glow that hadn't been there before, she was staring at the panda with pride shining on her features.

"_Now that…" _Tigress' voice was strained, as if she was frightened to sound anything but intimidating. _"Was pretty hardcore…" _

Po was motionless; staring like he didn't quite believe his ears and then a grin broke out on his face. In less than a blink of an eye he had launched himself at Tigress not giving her time to even react, his arms wrapping around her lithe form tightly, his head burying itself in the fur of her neck. The striped tiger had tensed and remained frozen in place, but she didn't push Po away. Her eyes were glazed and out of focus as a small contented clear-of-her-throat was released from between her clamped jaw. And before they realized the other part of the Furious Five were watching them awkwardly, and before Po released her so they could break apart the scene faded away as Tigress lost her focus on the memory, too embarrassed to let it play on.

They came back to Shifu and the tiger cub, who were still meditating with all their might, however the little tiger was now fidgeting every once in awhile, slowly losing interest in the task she had been given. Tigress chanced a glance at Oogway to find him observing her thoughtfully, a distant look in those soulful orbs of his.

"You are a complicated being, Tigress," Oogway told her softly as she stared back without so much as blinking. "But your heart has always been pure, always for the wellbeing of China…" He paused, looking down sadly, "…but what about your own wellbeing, do you ever consider that? What makes you happy?"

"What makes me… happy?"

"I believe that is what I said."

Tigress stood rooted in place, "Making sure others' lives are full of happiness makes me happy, Master."

Oogway smiled as he shook his finger at her, "Ah now that would be all well and good if it were true." She opened her mouth to protest, but his hands shot up. Tigress squinted, but closed her mouth firmly in resignation. "I believe that this is true sometimes, for it is true for everyone. When we aid others it gives us pleasure to see them prosper from this aid. But that memory you showed me… what made that particular one any more special than when you and the others saved China any other time? Why was that your happiest moment?"

"Because Shen was one of the most formidable opponents we ever came across," Tigress explained, "and when we defeated him it was a great victory."

"Are you sure of what you say, Tigress?" Oogway questioned.

"You insult me, Master. I tell you: I speak the truth…" she said slowly as she tried to sound as confident as possible. Tigress wasn't lying to him; she had never lied to the Grand Master. Part of why that memory was her most fond one was because they had ridden China of Shen and all his evil ways, but what she refused to admit was that she thought that maybe there was something else to do with it too. After all, that clumsy panda held quite a significant role in that memory also, but she would never admit she was even contemplating such things. She'd rather be summoned to exile.

Master Oogway seemed to pick up on this and sighed heavily, his shell rattling gently. He clacked his cane against the ground as he waited for the words to come to him. "What you refuse to speak of does not make it any less true. The future will be hard on you, my student, you shall be forced to make a choice, and the world and people you love will depend on it to be the right one. However, fate is only tough to those who can carry the weight." The turtle held out his hand and as he did, as if he knew it was meant to be, a single flower pedal drifted through the air and landed into his open palm. His fingers closed around it carefully and as it peeked out from between his grasp Tigress could see it was a pedal from a lotus blossom. Oogway fingered it with thoughtfulness.

"Ah, the lotus blossom, it reminds us to keep striving, for reasons you know full well," he reached out and tucked the single pedal in Tigress' breast pocket of her red vest. She looked up at him and as she did so she noticed that Oogway was beginning to blur. The details and lines on his face becoming hazy and unclear; she felt like if she stretched her arm towards him it would pass right through his frail body.

"Master you're…"

"Pay no attention to me, I've simply over did my stay," he said gently as he began to become transparent. "But listen to this… there shall always be hope. Even in your darkest hour, Tigress, look for the hope. It is all around you. Stand firm in what you know and do not let the whispers of this world conceive doubt in your heart. This is my message to you: a change is coming, a change that you must be open to. You have learned much and have grown into someone I am… very proud of." At this Oogway placed his fading hand on her shoulder, but she barely felt his touch. He was but a mist now. "When the time comes and when the darkness falls, as it surely will, you must stay strong. Keep faith, my student, for you are the one destined to be the light. The light to keep this whole world from failing. But you are not alone, another will have to rise, and together you will restore hope to these lost times."

Tigress bowed her head, "You cannot expect me to be able to do what you ask…"

"_I do not expect, I know…" _was the last fleeting whisper from the Grand Master. Oogway had disappeared now, his touch leaving her shoulder completely and she was left standing there alone in her mind with nothing but the projections from her memories_._ A soft wind blew past Tigress and caressed her fur, making her shiver. She turned back to Shifu and her former self, watching as she felt herself drift out of her deep meditation and back into her rightful consciousness. Shifu unfolded his legs and stretched as he stood, he walked over to his tiny student who had her eyes squeezed shut with concentration.

"_Tigress, you may get up now, it is time for supper." _

"_Yes Master Shifu… how did I do?" _

"_Very well." _

"_Really?" _

"_Mmhm, you will accomplish great things some day, Tigress… great things…" _

The memory blanked as their voices became a distant rumble and Tigress was brought back to the present. Her now heavy lidded eyes snapped open and she was bewildered to find herself sitting cross legged in the Hall of Warriors. Her head went from side to side observantly, taking in and remembering her surroundings. The candles were flickering wearily down to the wick; the polished floors reflected the sun from the long windows, the mahogany wooden door at the other end of the hall was still slightly agar, and a snoozing panda lay at her side. Po's small snores filled the room and when Tigress felt more like her natural self as the thoughts of meditation left her head she rolled her eyes at the sight of him. But even Po couldn't distract her from the one question pressing in on her like a rolling wave from the sea: how had Oogway gotten into her head and what in the Valley of Peace was he trying to tell her?

All of a sudden, one of the windows on her right hand side burst apart, glass shattering across the ground and through the air, as Crane came tumbling into the room. Po jolted awake from the noise, hands shooting underneath him as he heaved himself to his feet into his fighting stance with a loud warning cry.

"HAII!" He yelled until his eyes settled on Crane who was trying to furl his wings back compactly by his sides. Po glanced over at Tigress to find she was smirking at him yet again and a blush crept into his features.

"You fell asleep," she stated matter of factly.

"Just resting my eyes for a few minutes… y'know?" he mumbled with embarrassment before turning back towards Crane. "Dude… what's wrong with the door?"

Crane shook his head quickly as his eyes shone with worry, and Tigress and Po were immediately on guard. "No time for that. Zeng just arrived with word from Cavern City… they've been attacked."

Tigress was on her feet like a flash of lightning, "By who?"

Crane didn't answer.

"Crane!" She said sternly, "attacked by who?"

The feathered Master looked down at his feet before glancing up at Po. "They were attacked… by pandas."

Tigress stopped short and whirled around to face Po, but he was already halfway across the room and as her eyes met Crane's Po leaped out the window.

"Let's go," she whispered, and they hurried after him.

_::_

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading, see you next time! <strong>

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	4. Cavern City

**I'm so sorry for the longest taking update of life. My bad. But I can't post something if I think it's not going to be any good, and this took a _long_ time to get right. Engjoy people! :) **

**P.S. I love your reviews, thank you so very much for taking the time! And I love all your fanfics, they seriously inspire me bunches! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own it... boo hoo.**

**FYI: "Firestone" which will be used to describe some of the work in Cavern City is just something I thought up. It would look like a ruby, only not as clear, and probably a bit darker with streaks of black running through it. It may hold some significance later on, it may not. Time will tell. **

Chapter 3: Cavern City

The wind rustled through Po's fur as he sprinted down the Ten Thousand Steps. He refused to fall this time, and managed to stay vertical even though every now and then his feet wobbled slightly. There was one thing about himself he had always been good at and that was being obsessed with an idea. When something came along that interested Po he was all for it hook, line, and sinker. Ever since he had been eight his dream had been to meet and train with the Furious Five and that was a check. He had wanted to be a great warrior and save China from destruction, and that had turned out better than he hoped so that was a check too. Po also wanted to belong and be a part of a group or family and that was a double check. And now he wanted to finally see a real panda besides himself up close and personal, and by goodness he was going to get a check on that thing as well.

He had about two thousand more steps to go before the Five caught up to him… Po wasn't exactly at his maximum speed when it came to stairs.

"Po! Hey, wait up!" Monkey shouted as he hopped ten steps at once and ended up running beside the panda. Viper slithered down next Monkey, behind her was Tigress who looked strangely uneasy, and Crane was flapping soundlessly directly above their heads.

"No time…. Gotta get there…. Now!" Po puffed as his lungs wheezed painfully from his lack of oxygen.

Mantis who had been hidden from view behind Monkey's head jumped up onto the primate's shoulder. He rocked from side to side as Monkey's arms flexed while he ran. "Hold up there big guy, you're going to play yourself out."

"Slow down, Po," Viper told him gently from behind him, "you'll be no good in a fight if you can't even manage to breathe. We'll get there eventually."

However he didn't slow down, in fact, he did quite the opposite and pushed himself to the limit. Didn't they get it? This was his species! A race who had been thought to be extinct until ten minutes ago. He wanted to know where they came from… and where they had been hiding for twenty something years. But more importantly, Po needed to know why they were attacking the Valley. Pandas weren't aggressive; he knew that much from his own instincts, they were docile creatures. Tough and courageous they could be when it was needed, but to suddenly raid a tiny mining town on the outskirts of Peace Valley didn't fit into the puzzle like it should. Something was off, he just knew it.

As he gained speed Po somehow managed to pull away from the rest of the Masters, leaving them in a cloud of his own dust. That is, he managed to out sprint all but one. Moments later Po felt and heard a rush of wind on his left hand side and glanced briefly before he lost his footing to see Tigress keeping time with his steps. She wasn't even breaking a sweat. If it had been different circumstances he would have blabbered on about her endurance nonstop as he often did when she did something that was natural to her, but amazing to anyone else; which Po came to realize was quite often. But he remained silent with his mouth hinged firmly shut and concentrated on running.

"Po," Tigress commanded with a steady but feeling tone, "Viper is right. You must watch your stamina."

He shot a quick look at her again, not able to ignore the way her hind legs contracted with grace and hidden strength as she took the stairs two by two. His eyes met hers before he turned away and lost himself for a moment, almost giving into her before images of black and white beings entered his mind. "… The pandas," Po pleaded, completely understanding how desperate he must sound, "Tigress… something's wrong…"

The south China tiger studied him under an intense gaze, not even watching where she was going. Her orange glare ran over his features and faltered slightly as she stared back into his waiting eyes. A moment of understanding passed between them. Po had to get there, he knew she understood that. With a quick nod, Tigress looked upwards and motioned Crane out of the sky.

The aviator dove down until he was only an arms length away from Po's shoulder blade, his straw hat rippling in the wind. Tigress stared at the two warriors. "You will ride with Crane."

Did she want him to crush the poor thing? Sure, Crane had carried him before, but never for more than a few minutes and never over such a distance. Po opened his muzzle to object; when she raised her hand to stop him. "Crane is more than capable, I know his abilities and in the air you will arrive twice as fast as the rest of us," she told him, and then looked only at the winged Master. "Fly fast, do not over exert yourself, but arrive at Cavern City as quickly as possible. Find cover until we arrive and take note of what you see."

"Okay, come on Po," Crane flew over to the panda's left and waited for Po to grab hold.

Po looked back at Tigress, relief present all over his face. "Thanks, Tigress."

The feline smiled and managed to shrug as she ran. "We'll meet you two there," she quipped, dropping to all fours and speeding off at the maximum of her speed. But to Po her words had meant _"I'll _see you soon, Po." He stared transfixed as Tigress disappeared into the distance followed by a panting Monkey and a huffing Viper.

"Alright, stop staring… let's go," Crane spoke up from beside him; he had forgotten the bird was still there.

"I wasn't staring!"

Crane sighed with a hint of amusement. Obviously he thought something about the panda was comical, but for the life of him Po couldn't figure out what it was. His fur wasn't matted; his breath didn't smell… well he didn't think anyways. "There's no time to argue," Crane said as it became evident Po was too caught up in thoughts to realize they really did have to get a move on. Just seconds ago the Dragon Warrior had been barreling towards Cavern City as if no force could ever sway him from his task, now he didn't seem all that interested. Leave it to Po to switch moods like that; actually leave it to Po to defy anything. The bird snatched his fellow Master's wrist between his hind claws and took off.

"Ouch! Hey, watch it Crane!" Po grunted while he slammed into a piece of granite projecting from the mountain as they gained altitude. It felt like Crane had done that on purpose.

"Just trying to wipe that love-struck look off your face," the bird mumbled and flapped harder until the world blurred below them. But his words caught on the wind and faded into a murmured whisper.

"I wish I could wipe it off Tigress' maw too."

But Po never heard any of it.

_::_

He almost fell out of Crane's grip when their destination came into view. Po had never laid eyes on Cavern City before and as he stared in shock his hold on the bird slackened, he even let go with one paw so he could point at the sight they were approaching. He slipped too or three inch out of Crane's grip.

"Oh, woah. Would you look at that!" Po exclaimed while the twinkling lights of the village buildings shone welcomingly from within the giant circular cave entrance they were now nearing.

Crane grunted from the strain of trying to hold Po safely from a long fatal fall and from maintaining a steady speed as his wings shook from the pressure. "Po… don't make me do everything please…" he begged and struggled to keep them air born.

"Oh, man sorry," Po apologized. He reached up and grabbed the skinny avian bird legs again, glancing at Crane sheepishly. Crane breathed with relief from not having to worry about letting the panda plummet to his death and focused on bringing them in for a safe landing.

Cavern City was located deep inside the tallest mountain of Peace Valley, and because said mountain was located off on the outskirts of the valley far away from everything else few knew where it was. Some even considered it a myth. The inhabitants of the cave village were quiet peacekeeping people; wise in their ways of life and hardly ever left the safeguard and security of the mountain's shadows. Because of this the dwellers of Cavern City were quite identifiable. It didn't take much to notice the pale, pasty fur, the faded color of their eyes, and the lime stone stained paws from harvesting cave produce. Many had been in the caves so long it pained them to face the sun. They hardly meddled with the outside world and were often out of the loop of China's conditions by a few years due to the lack of news. The species of the inhabitants varied, but many were reptilians and for some reason cold blooded creatures. In fact Cavern City was where Viper's ancestors had descended from.

Crane swooped around, doing a half circle and aimed for the tall mountain trees just outside the mouth of the cave.

"Why aren't we going inside?" Po asked as he let go of the flying Master and snatched one of the bottom tree branches. With more grace than any normal bumbling panda could possess he flipped completely around the branch and then free fell, landing with bent knees on his feet. Po ducked behind the trunk of the tree which was just wide enough to hide his berth while overhead Crane perched on a branch covered with many leaves.

Crane glanced down at Po and found the panda staring up at him questionably. "Tigress said to find cover until they arrive," he reminded Po, "Right now we are simply spies."

"Right."

Po turned back to the city and from the ground finally realized just how huge it actually was. The mouth of the cave stretched an estimated seventy feet into the air and still the full height of the village was hidden from view. The top of the cave mouth held a series of pointed and jagged rocks, making it seem as if the whole city lay in the mouth of a monster with ferocious looking teeth. From what Po could see there was a defense wall with four watch towers at the head of Cavern City; in the middle of the wall was a small doorway which held no door. However entering a door-less entrance with archers shooting arrows from those watch towers would be hard enough as it was. Beyond the wall Po caught glimpses of mineral tiled walkways and streets and buildings up to five stories high carved solely out of stone. There was nothing made from wood or brick paste, or even bamboo, just solid stone for as far as the eye could see. The city was illuminated by lit torches that hung along the walkways and occupied the inside of each structure. The fire from each torch failed to give a natural red flame, instead they all gave off an eerie blue glow which made Po question if it was really fire burning on the torches at all.

"There's no sign of anyone," Crane observed from his perch off the ground. Po nodded in agreement as they both stared at the lifeless entrance. It was unnerving; there was not even a breath on the wind.

Po had seen this tactic before. "You think they're trying to ambush us?" He tried to say "pandas" instead of "they're", but for some unknown reason he couldn't manage to utter the word aloud. It sounded too wrong.

"The tunnels run deep into Cavern City, like a maze. It's there that the citizens store their most valuable possessions; my guess is that's where the attack is raging."

Po jumped two feet into the air at Tigress' voice from directly behind him. He whirled so quickly he would have struck her full in the face if her reflexes hadn't been as sharp. She remained indifferent as his fist went flying inches from her snout.

"Easy, Dragon Warrior," Tigress mused, amber eyes sparking with a light stir. "The fight hasn't begun yet."

She wasn't even breaking a sweat. Po wanted to grumble over not having her stamina as he noticed she was breathing as if she had simply gotten off her bed roll and moseyed over to her bedroom door at her own sweet pace. It was simply unfair. He glanced around and realized the other three weren't even in sight yet. He eyed her suspiciously, wondering how she had managed to sneak up behind him without so much of a crumple of a leaf under her feet. At least he knew where to go for advice on silent tracking.

"Can you be a little more… louder or something next time? So I can actually hear you coming and don't kill you by accident?" Po questioned as the shock dissipated, making Tigress smile slyly. She leaned around him to examine the cave village up ahead.

"I don't think you'd be able to kill me so easily, Po." She mumbled.

He wasn't sure he was supposed to hear that last part, but he did, and he couldn't help but note that her voice sounded a bit heavy hearted as she said it. Po watched in amusement as the tiger's ears flicked in every direction trying to catch something that would give them a heads up as to what lied ahead. Her ears rose forwards suddenly. And for a moment Tigress looked like one of those innocent little yapping dog jesters the emperor kept in his palace for entertainment. She tensed on the balls of her feet, becoming a solid statue as she cocked her head slightly to the right, picking up on something that was too far away for either Crane or him to hear. Then, slowly, she relaxed and turned back towards him.

Tigress nodded off into the distance with a smirk, "Viper and Monkey have arrived."

Seconds later Po heard the heavy gasping of the other two members of the Five, and a snake slithered tersely up to the tree followed by Monkey who was dragging his long front limbs on either side of him. A rather bored looking Mantis sat balanced on the primate's head; he held two strands of Monkey's neck fur in his small grasp as if they were reins.

"Faster! C'mon Monkey, don't slow down until you cross the finish. You've still got a good ten meters left and-"

"Shut up, Mantis," the simian puffed with as much of a growl as a monkey can offer. Monkey collapsed at the edge of the tree trunk while Viper actually managed to wind herself half up the trunk and rest her head on one of the branches below Crane.

Mantis made a springy hop from Monkey to Tigress' shoulder. "Next time I'm traveling with you, not with these two handicaps. Seriously, I think we _might _have broken ten miles an hour back there on the straight stretch, but even that's iffy."

Viper stuck her forked tongue out with a soft hissing noise while Tigress chuckled. Po was just incredibly glad the tiger made him hitch a ride from Crane, and he immediately started to dread the ride home. There would be no freebies this time. "So are we going to investigate and stuff?" Po asked as his paws itched to begin. He hadn't forgotten about the pandas in the slightest.

"We'll let Monkey and Viper take a breather," Tigress said as she stared at the cave mouth and glanced over at Crane high in the tree. "Crane and Mantis, stand guard for them and I'll take a quick look inside the city to see exactly what is happening." Po stared with an open mouth as the others nodded and Tigress sunk to all fours, ready to sneak unnoticed into the cave. Before she could take off he extended his arm in front of her, blocking her way. "Po. Move please," her voice was tight.

"I'm coming."

"I'll be back within minutes, it's not necessary."

He shook his head, keeping his arm firmly in place. "Yes, it is so necessary."

"Po, I want you to stay here."

"No, I-"

"That was not a proposition!" Tigress stood, turning on her heel to meet Po straight in the eye. "It was an order, Dragon Warrior. You will stay at the tree."

"It might not hurt if he tagged along, Tigress…" Viper said softly from her tree branch. She was watching the exchange between them carefully, much like the other three, except they remained quiet and still. The air had suddenly turned icy and layered with an unsettling feeling that couldn't have been sliced with even Monkey's sharpest blade.

Tigress' paws were curled into clenched fists and her arms were straight and jarred. "It does not matter what "might and might not hurt"," she told the snake lowly, but her gaze was solely trained on Po. "He is not coming. There are pandas in there, a species he has not seen except when he looks into a mirror and relives lost memories. I will not have him freeze as soon as he lays eyes on them. We are on a mission, and there is no time to be emotionally compromised."

"Tigress! I want to come; you can't make me stay here against my will!" Po exclaimed.

"Watch me."

She took off in no more than a blink of an eye and left them dazed at her words. Po growled deeply to himself as his eyes smoldered at the stubborn cat that was now streaking out of sight. He turned slowly back towards his friends to find them all empty of words and looking at the frown on his face. "Aargh," Po grunted in exasperation as he slumped down by the four Masters. "Sometimes… I just want to punch her!"

"I think the feelings mutual, so no need feeling guilty or anything," Mantis drawled, making Po sigh.

He snatched a loose twig from the tree and scribbled mindless pictures in the dirt beside him. "I wish she'd just make up her mind…"

Crane, who had been relatively silent during the past while drifted down to the branch Viper was resting on. They shot each other bewildered looks. "Make up her mind about what?" he asked while Viper eyed him cluelessly.

"About if she actually believes in me or not. I mean at first she didn't, but I can't blame her because none of you did either. I didn't even believe in myself. Then, after Tai Lung at least she would smile and talk and stuff… So I thought she did then." Po paused when he noticed the feline shaped figure he had unknowingly drew in the earth. Realizing what he was doing, he scrubbed it away just as quickly as he had made it and tossed the twig over his shoulder. The Five said nothing, but each was staring at the smudged ground. "And I really thought she believed in me when we defeated Shen!"

"Correction," Monkey interjected, "when _you _defeated Shen. That was all you, man." All three heads nodded in agreement.

Po glanced up with a bashful grin before it fell off his face. "Yeah… well Tigress must have forgotten about that if she doesn't even think I can survive a cave."

Viper coiled down the trunk until she had slithered into an elegant heap beside him. "Po," she warned, "you can't think like that. Tigress… she's complex, you must have figured that out by now. We don't know why she does the things she does, but we trust that she has a good reason at heart."

"And she hasn't once let us down yet," Crane threw in.

"I just want her to stop thinking I need to be taken care of," Po mumbled. "I know I'm new at this… but can't she see what I've done? Can't she see I don't need her to watch over me all the time? She definitely wasn't there when I fought Tai Lung and she couldn't help me with Shen, and I made out just fine! I defeated them."

"But at what cost?" Viper asked knowingly. "Po, you almost died both times. We believe in you, but then again we weren't twenty centimeters away from you when Shen blew you through the roof. Tigress was."

At the mention of that night Po was immediately drawn back to the moment. He had wanted to know about his parents so bad, and Shen had been right there, the knowledge within his grasp. At the time Po had wanted to choke it out of the stupid peacock; he was so angry, so very angry. By the time he actually seen the canon it was too late and there was nowhere to duck… but Tigress had seen it.

She had picked up on the trap the second he ran after Shen. Po thought a first that she was going to save him, but when he seen the despair in her eyes he knew there was no way she could make. But Tigress, being Tigress, tried anyway. She was so close when the fire ball hit him that her fur singed, he remembered her shout his name and watching as her outstretched arms grew farther and farther away as he sailed through the air. Then, his back made contact with the building and his vision went red and was gone.

"She thought you were dead, Po," Viper whispered, ripping him away from the past. He looked up into her teal colored irises. "And not being able to save you… it hurt her. A lot."

Mantis shrugged, "In Tigress' mind she's responsible for all of us. She's the leader, and she thinks that because we allow her to direct us and keep us bound together that if something goes wrong it's her fault. Your "death" was her failure."

"But that's not even healthy!" Po said, astonished.

"You're telling me," Mantis smiled and then frowned, "but that's how she is… and for some reason that feeling is even stronger when it comes to you."

"What?"

Crane leaned back on his legs precariously. He was the eldest of the Five, and Tigress had over the years become like a younger sibling to him. His subtle protectiveness over the tiger was hardly ever noticed, but something triggered it right then that caused him to clear his throat loudly. "This isn't between us and you, Po, it's between you and Tigress. We've already shared more than she would have liked your ears to hear," he said warningly.

Po and the remainder of the Masters averted their gaze from him as if they had been caught in the act of gossiping. "I'm sorry," Po managed softly, feeling suddenly ashamed of talking about his closest friend behind her very back. "I shouldn't have said anything."

Viper shot the aviator a sharp glare as Po twiddled his thumbs, and after a long minute of silence Crane sighed. "No, Po, I didn't mean that you were being disloyal or anything like that… You worry about her, and being the closest to her out of all of us it makes sense-"

"The closest?" Po questioned all of a sudden, his ears perking up at the words.

Crane hesitated but then nodded. "Yeah, the closest."

"I haven't even known any of you for a whole year yet, what makes you think I'm-"

"Have you ever seen Tigress hug any of us?" Viper asked as her eyebrows arched above her eyes. "Twice?"

Monkey grinned cheekily. "Not that she had much choice with that last one, heh Po?"

The panda's cheeks darkened into a deep red at their words. His paws ached for the warm silkiness of Tigress' fur and the way she seemed to fit quite snugly in his embrace. "I-I…. um…."

"We'll tell you this," Crane said slowly, knowing that if he was going to speak something so confided about Tigress to Po he might as well make sure the warrior understood. "Master Tigress believes in you. Okay Po? So don't worry about that. If you want something to worry about then worry about how devastated she was when she thought you had died. Worry about how she searches high and low for you when you're late for training. Worry about how she's always the one to come and fetch you when you're with your dad and you're wanted back at the palace. Worry about how much she _does _believe in you, and not how much she doesn't. And if you want something to think about… then think about how much Tigress cares for the bumbling panda that carries the name "Dragon Warrior". If I was you those would be the things that would be on my mind when I think of the tiger master."

Everything was still. Monkey, Mantis, Viper, and Crane were all watching him with a stare so serious that it made him feel like never laughing again. His eyes widened; what had Crane meant exactly? How much did Tigress actually care about him? They were fellow Masters and he knew she supported him when his decisions weren't totally dumb and held an inkling of sense. Po knew she was his friend too. They talked, and smiled, and occasionally he could make her laugh when his jokes were good enough. However, then the panda began to really think. There were other things that they did too… like when she hugged him, and when he had hugged her back. Viper was right; Tigress had never done such a thing to any of her fellow members of the Furious Five. When Po stopped to think about it he doubted that Tigress would spar everyday for a month with any of them either. Or sit with them in the darkest part of the night and listen while they spilled out nonsense about how they felt guilty over the downfall of their species. Or hold their paw and let them run their thumb down the fur covering her claws.

But, she had done all those things with him. Master Tigress, the being half of China described as "the emotionless protector" had more emotions than he had ever seen in anyone. She just knew how to hide them. But how come Tigress had bothered to show these emotions to him of all people? He had no answer, but for once Po began to contemplate just how much the south China tiger cared for him.

Po was on his feet within moments, his hope rekindled, his spirit renewed. Tigress cared, and if not anything else, she was his closest companion.

_"I'd die for you too you know… in a heartbeat."_

Her words from the previous night brought a smile to his face, making him beam as he regained his usual joyful self. Po looked at them with a sparkle in his eyes.

"Wow," Mantis announced, "there's the Po I know and love. Where have you been, buddy?"

Po hauled on his trousers, securing them around his waist with a determined expression. "I don't know, but I know where I'm going."

"Where's that?" Viper chuckled.

"To find Tigress."

Monkey gaped, "but we're supposed to wait here…"

Crane shook his head, "Po, you know what she s-"

"I know what she told me," the panda told them with a shrug as if he didn't know his life could easily be at the hands of a livid Tigress. "But I don't really care. It's about time someone proved her wrong."

Mantis laughed, "You are going to die!" Po turned towards the cave, just as determined as Tigress was when she had departed.

"Po!" Viper exclaimed, "She's going to be really mad!"

"If she is, I'll just hug her again… it worked the last time," he said calmly with a wink and took off to Cavern City. Not quite as fast as Tigress had for obvious reasons, but he was still pretty darn quick.

"I know you were trying to defend Tigress…" Viper said gently as she took in the sight of the shocked bird beside her that was Master Crane. "But you might have missed the mark. Just a tad…"

Mantis rolled his huge bug eyes. "You think?"

_::_

Po knew he was stubborn, and he knew that he shouldn't be defying Tigress' orders either; but no matter how stubborn and defiant he was the tiger Master was double that. The only time she had ever left him behind like this before was when they were at Gongmen City. Going against her will then had left them all with defeat and a barely alive panda. He should have learned his lesson since then. He should be turning back right now, but he couldn't. Po needed to show her he could handle himself, that he wasn't just good at making mistakes. He could do more than fight, he could fight with purpose. Today, Po would fight for Tigress, and she'd see how completely serious he was. About kung fu, about China, about being the Dragon Warrior, and definitely about her.

"…Wait, what?" he mumbled into the air. Po slowed to a light jog at the entrance, which was even bigger than he'd thought from back at the tree. It wasn't very often that he felt tiny, but at that moment not only did he feel small, but also felt that he was about to be swallowed whole by the ferocious cave mouth and its pointy stalactites. What track had he been on when he said he was serious about Master Tigress? What was that even supposed to mean? "Focus…." He disciplined, eyeing the watch towers that loomed high above him for a hint of movement. Seeing nothing, Po moved forwards timidly at a soft pace.

He made it under the archway and as the whole of Cavern City came into view his jaw almost hit the floor. He was standing in a large courtyard, cut cleanly from one huge piece of solid marble. It was polished to perfection, and when Po glanced down he could see his reflection at his feet, every detail flawless. Buildings carved out of the dark mountain stone surrounded the courtyard. Each rose up to the ceiling of the cave; they seemed unending and their glassless windows peered down at Po darkly, creating an uneasy twinge in his belly. At the end of the marble courtyard a cobblestone road led off into the deep, the road consisted of jade, amber, and firestone. At first Po wondered why on earth they would use such precious gems for their walkways, but then remembered the green flooring of the Hall of Heroes in the _Jade _Palace, and knew he wasn't the one to judge. Blue torch light lit the path as it winded downhill into the depths of whatever laid ahead. Po shifted from one foot to the other, there was no sign of anyone.

Suddenly an ear screeching cry pierced the air, forcing Po to grab his head and cringe at the painful noise coming from somewhere down the road. It was a horribly feral sound that reverberated off the walls, however just as quickly as it began it was cut off. Po's fur rose slightly, no desperate noise like that could be cut off by anything good. Whatever made that sound had his pity… and his attention. Without another breath he shot down the courtyard and onto the cobblestone.

He was sure that Tigress, wherever she may be, had heard it too, and no doubt would be taking off towards the source of it as well. Unless…

Unless the cry had come from her mouth.

The horrifying thought made him double his efforts. Po knew Tigress was more than likely not even capable of recreating something so helpless, but he couldn't stop himself from thinking that it had sounded strangely like a feline. Too much like a feline.

The path ahead was dreary, and the torches proved to be a terrible source of light. Po couldn't see more than fifteen feet in front of him even when he squinted, but he propelled forwards, determined to find his striped companion. Another cry rang out, this time closer and the same dialect as the last. It was the same creature twice and Po winced when he realized that whoever was assaulting the creature must be torturing him. Or simply teasing him before death. He felt disgust rise in his throat and his heart raced.

Again a cry, but this time it was discernable. "SAVE!" it screamed; dripping and gurgling with agony, and almost forcing Po to stop and be sick all over the side of the road from the bile in his mouth. "SS-SAVE…. ME!"

Po wanted to shout out in response, he knew he was closing in on the pour being and was probably only two hundred meters away by now. His legs pumped and spasmed, he needed to save this guy! Where the heck was Tigress in all this? The thought dissolved from his head as he noticed the torch lights brightening as he ran along. Suddenly Po could see twenty feet in front of him, and then thirty, and the buildings around him also grew shorter the farther he went. Soon they were only two stories high and he could make out the beginning of a new marble courtyard up ahead, and in that courtyard were more torches. However these ones held fire, real red light, unlike the blue glows from the walls, and Po could just make out the tall dragon-masked individuals who held the torches high above their heads. He growled and knew that whatever he was seeking lay up ahead.

However, Po never got there.

As he came close to a hundred meters away something to his right shot out of a second story window, and his peripherals caught an orange blazing mass as it flew down to meet him. He braced himself for impact, but instead felt something latch onto his arm roughly and swing him off the road. Po's back slammed against granite rock and he found himself pressed against the wall of a dark enclave between two stone buildings. He was being held in place by his shoulders, and when he glanced in front of him his eyes met two fiery squinting orbs.

"What do you think you're doing?"

He had found Tigress.

The tiger hissed, her lips drawn into an unsettling snarl, "I told you to stay with the others. Didn't they try and stop you? If you blow our cover, Po, this whole mission is ruined."

"I-I….. I thought that maybe you neede-"

"You thought? You never think," She shot at him, her grip tightening on his shoulders. "You never take the time to contemplate anything. You just react."

His eyes widened at her words and for a moment he felt like a clumsy fat panda that couldn't seem to do his job, then his eyes squinted just as much as Tigress' gaze was. Irritation bubbled inside him, and unable to contain it Po snatched her paws and ripped them off him. "I don't need your protection Tigress! I never have, so please, spare me and go babysit someone else."

Po believed briefly she was going to jump him right there and then by the looks of the shock and furiousness flowing from her illuminated glare. "You know nothing!"

"Then, please… enlighten me, oh Wise One," he demanded, voice dry with sarcasm. "What don't I understand? Are you scared of losing me, Tigress? Am I really that important to you? The mighty Tigress, terrified of trusting the Dragon Warrior with his own life… scared he'll throw it away."

"ENOUGH!" She said just so it was loud enough to be considered a shout. She had gone completely ridged at his words, her muscles rippling in anger. "Do you not remember what was said last night? I vowed I would die for you panda for as long as you live, but you make that a very hard oath to fulfill when you go and get yourself blown up! Excuse me for taking precautions this time around!"

Po shook his head, wanting to believe her with every fiber of his being, but was still wary of what the others had said. "You lie," he said firmly, "no one cares that much for me… especially not you."

Tigress looked like he had taken a metal rod and swung it at her face, her scarlet eyes searched him endlessly, and she suddenly didn't seem too sure of herself anymore. "That's filth… and you know it."

He raised a single eyebrow. "Do I?"

"…Po," Tigress hesitated, "stop this. You know in your heart that we all appreciate everything you do. You are the Dragon Warrior for China's sake! You've restored China twice in six months."

"Oh… so it's my title that you care about, I see."

"No!" she refused, responding as quickly as her reflexes did during training. "It's for who you are, who you've always been; with or without the dragon scroll and the victory over Shen. We care about Po Ping, the panda," She laid a paw on his shoulder much gentler than before, "And Po Pong the friend."

Po nodded, "The others do… but what about you?"

"What about me?" She looked startled and stiffened uncomfortably.

"Am I "Po Ping the friend" to you too?"

He watched her carefully, and as she paused to answer him Po took note. "Yes, of course," she whispered.

They stood in silence, not knowing what else to say. Po was unsure of asking the next question, but it was one they both knew was coming. "Is that all?" He mumbled, barely reaching her ears. If her hearing had been any poorer she would have missed it.

Tigress stared at him unblinking, her face unmoving and emotionless, and then… suddenly it all fell apart. She allowed herself a simple blink and in the span of a second so many things jumped across her face that he lost count until she settled on a single emotion. Pain. Tigress winced, her glittering eyes filling with pent up hurt and just plain exhaustion; she looked more tired in that moment than Po had ever seen her. She looked down and trembled before tearing her gaze off the floor and back up to him once more. "Don't ask me that," Tigress said softly, and her features were divided between hesitance and longing.

"H-H-HELP!" The scream that had driven Po so far earlier resumed its call. It sounded somehow even more desperate now than before and was choked up with a sob of pure terror. Tigress' ears flattened on the top of her skull and Po jerked as his body yearned to run after the creature and his captors.

"Come, he won't last much longer," Tigress said sternly, motioning for him to follow her as she began to stalk out from between the two buildings.

Before she could take another step, Po was between her and the exit. His hands found her arms and held her in place. "Tigress… I need to know…"

To his bewilderment her eyes softened yet again and he felt a cold paw press against his cheek. Unconsciously, Po leaned his face into her fingers, not able to restrain himself as his grip tightened on her and tugged her to him. Her breath hit his face and when he glanced into her eyes he found her closer than she'd ever been before. Their chests almost touched. Tigress shook her head slowly, "I don't have an answer, Po… I'm more confused than I've ever been."

"What is there to be confused about?" He asked in a hushed voice.

"So much," she told him truthfully, her paw tracing a path down the side of his face. She realized this and attempted to tug her hand away but Po held it in place gently. He felt a blush color the sides of his cheeks as they grew very warm. "You are Po Ping, the one I care most about. More than I've ever cared for one person, but what that means… I have yet to find out."

Po stared into her two orange eyes, seeing her torn feelings fully for the first time. "Okay," he said softly, his tone filled with respect. He released her slowly, and after a long moment of examining him with her glowing orbs Tigress backed away. She nodded with a relaxed expression and turned to leave the alley when Po's hand shot out and grabbed her wrist yet again. She looked back at him. "Um… but when you find out what it means though. Ah… will you- I mean …. Um…"

Tigress smiled and nodded for a second time. "You will be the first to know."

He returned the grin a bit sheepishly, "okay."

"PLEASSSE!" The cry burned Po's ear drums and both the panda and the tiger froze. Tigress growled deep in her throat as she crouched low to the ground.

"We've lost time," she spoke firmly; her hardcore back in place like it was never gone. "Come on Dragon Warrior, we'll scale the building and attack from the rooftops."

Without another word or intake of breath she pounced, launching herself upwards and her paw took hold of a stone window sill twenty feet above their heads. She used her momentum to propel herself through the glassless opening and she disappeared from view. "Yeah…" Po mumbled, scratching his chin, "That might be a better plan than just barging in on the bad guys like I was going to do before…"

Suddenly a thick rope fell out of the window and landed at his feet. Tigress' head shot out of the window along with it, and her fist held the end of said rope. "Indubitably," She said with a smirk and a wink, "now grab hold."

Po blushed and did as he was told, lacing his chubby fingers through the rope. He jumped, heaving himself upwards while Tigress grunted and hauled on the cord. Three seconds later he found himself sprawled out on a bedroom floor, the window behind him, and Tigress before him. Po stood and brushed his pants off, "thanks for that."

The tiger Master placed a single finger to her lips and motioned for him to follow. Po shook his head and whispered loudly, "oh yeah right, silent mode, got it."

Tigress rolled her eyes and took off. They found a flight of stairs and took it until they were in the highest story of the house; with her encouragement to the panda they both managed to jump out of one of the top most windows and land safely on the roof of another building twenty meters away. They ran from rooftop to rooftop after that, gradually getting closer to the second marble court that held the source of all the screaming. They hadn't heard any more cries since being in the alleyway, and Po was becoming anxious. He glanced over at Tigress to find her eyebrows furrowed deep in concentration, Po knew she despised torture; she'd rather go through it herself than watch it… or hear it. Because of this and because of the rushed way she was moving he could tell she was angry with herself. Angry they had wasted precious minutes away in that alley; angry she had allowed herself that luxury when it should have been kept for when they were alone at the palace. Never on a mission. Her voice from a few days after Shen's defeat rang through his head. They had been on the boat on their return back to the Valley; the others had retired to catch up on some sleep.

_"When our hearts guide us, and we forget to think with our heads we don't just become vulnerable. We make others vulnerable as well. There has to be a balance of heart and head, and our heads must always keep our hearts in check. For they're wild and unpredictable, you never know what they'll do." _

_Po smirked, "Like me." _

_"Yes, Po," Tigress smiled, gazing out onto the water surrounding them, "exactly like you." _

Po sighed at the memory, she was angry for allowing her heart to control her; she was ashamed that she acted like him. He wanted to punch something, but when he looked ahead he found the end of the rooftops approaching. Tigress slowed to a jog as they leaped over the last gap, and together they soundlessly crouched over the roof. She lay on her stomach and Po followed, doing the same. They were about to shimmy over to the edge when her paw stopped him, grabbing hold of his shoulder.

"Whatever we see," Tigress warned her voice low and layered with deep emotion, surprising him. "You must not do a thing; do you understand me, Po? We won't be able to fight without the Five."

He stared back at her as the seriousness of the moment shook him, and after a long pause he nodded in agreement.

"Swear to me."

"…. I promise," Po told her softly, reaching up to place his hand over hers on his shoulder. She watched silently, eyes jumping around his face, and once she was satisfied gave a curt nod.

Tigress slid her paw out from under his, "come." They shimmied to the edge. With a fleeting glance his way she moved the ten inches needed to see over the siding as Po hesitated before moving as well. His gaze hit the marble courtyard bellow and as it did so his mouth fell open.

In the middle of the courtyard stood nine armored warriors, they each stood tall, towering like an unmovable force. Each held identical weapons in their grip. A dadao, a long single bladed sword that was thin at the hilt and broadened at the end, Monkey had told him the dadaos were used mainly for slashing and chopping… all in all, a formidable weapon. They all had red painted dragon masks covering their faces, as Po had seen earlier, but only one held the flaming torch. It was the largest warrior, and he held it over his head as his mask swiveled from side to side. He was looking for something.

"We are too late…" Tigress spoke quietly from beside him. She seemed pained and her eyes shifted downwards in regret. Po glanced out into the courtyard again and as he found what she had been talking about his heart fell.

There, in the center of the nine enemies, was a heap of fur lying across the ground. It was the victim, the screamer, but now he lay very still. Po's eyes widened when he noticed it was a feline, a Bengal tiger, and one of Tigress' own. His white coat was stained red, as was the ground around him, and many cuts covered his matted fur. His ears were flat against his skull, his arms and legs hung limply, and Po knew he was dead. Those men had murdered him.

Po glanced over at Tigress. She was staring at the scene with hardened eyes; however he noticed they were slightly glazed over and wet. "I'm sorry, brother," she hissed, bowing her head in respect, "you will be avenged."

"Tigr-" he began.

"Hush, Po, they're about to speak."

He directed his attention back to the group of warriors, but this time with a deep disgust for each one of them. One of the nine stepped towards the man holding the torch, his dadao gleaming in the firelight. "Sir… what shall we do?"

The warrior with the torch brought a hand to his face and fingered the bridge of his nose through his plated mask; he was undoubtedly the leader of the group. He sighed heavily, "I know not which direction to take. Our prisoner died without giving away the information we needed to get out of him. I didn't know tigers were so strong willed."

If the mood had been lighter Po would have commented to Tigress about this, but he refused to do such a thing giving the situation. At least the man died with honor, withholding all that he knew from those monsters.

"… Sir, we must act…" another of the men said to the leader of the group.

The main warrior nodded, "yes, yes we must." He handed his torch to the one closest to him and unsheathed his dadao that had been hanging at his waist. "We will wait, the smell of blood will soon reach the entrance, and when the Dragon Warrior and the Furious Five smell it they will hurry to us. Wherever they are hiding now I don't have the slightest idea, but they will be here before too long I know that for sure."

"And when they come, Sir?"

"Kill the insect, the snake, the bird, and the primate. Capture the tiger; we will take her to Master. I cannot watch another tiger die today, their will to survive makes it too painful. Let Master do with her what he will, she can be his burden."

The men all nodded in agreement. "What about the Dragon Warrior?" one of them asked. A terrible silence ensued, and all heads turned to their general.

"You know his role in this," the leader hissed, "he must be brought to Master as well, he is the key to everything."

"Yes, Nigulasi," they chorused.

Nigulasi. Po felt an unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach and something picked at the back of his brain. His body stiffened; Tigress watched him with a confused expression. "What is it?" she inquired.

Po rubbed his forehead in thought. "Nigulasi… I know that name."

"Come Dragon Warrior!" Nigulasi bellowed suddenly, making them both divert their attention back to the courtyard. They watched as he reached up with two giant dark hands and removed his mask, holding it at his side. Po's mouth fell open as he stared at the black and white head that emerged from behind the helmet. A panda head. Po couldn't pry his face away from the rugged brow, the hardened emerald eyes, and the firm jaw. A panda… after all these years of hoping to finally see his species, of wishing they could still exist, and fate gives him this… a troop of murderous pandas, who have just heartlessly slaughtered another being.

The irony bit Po in the face.

And as if that wasn't enough. Nigulasi roared like a lion, barring his teeth and holding his sword high in the air. It glistened with dried blood and Po shuddered, not even noticing Tigress' paw on his arm.

"Come Dragon Warrior! Come to me, Po!" he yelled again, his taunt echoing off the walls. He placed a hand over his heart. "Come… and meet your father."

_::_

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><p><strong>I know I promised action, but is drama okay for now? Are you angry with the ending? You are? Good. ;) Trust me, it gets more interesting than this! <strong>

**_Thank you for reading..._ **

Even though people may think opposite... the review button is _actually_ used for reviewing.

Take advantage of it today!


	5. Within the Heart

**I know, I know. Its felt like months since I've been on here... oh wait, it has been! I'm sorry for the long, unnecessary wait. I've been stressing out over EVERYTHING lately, and I might have had a month of depression and stuff going on. Yeah, these last few months have definitely been a growing experience. Anyways, here it is! **

** Practically 10 000 words long. Probably too long, but I couldn't help myself. It need to be done guys! **

**Enjoy! **

**~ C.A. **

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><p>Chapter Five: Within the Heart<p>

_A panda… after all these years of hoping to finally see his species, of wishing they could still exist, and fate gives him this… a troop of murderous pandas, who have just heartlessly slaughtered another being. _

_The irony bit Po in the face._

_And as if that wasn't enough. Nigulasi roared like a lion, barring his teeth and holding his sword high in the air. It glistened with dried blood and Po shuddered, not even noticing Tigress' paw on his arm._

_"Come Dragon Warrior! Come to me, Po!" he yelled again, his taunt echoing off the walls. He placed a hand over his heart. "Come… and meet your father." _

_::_

In that moment, the world froze for Tigress. Her gaze that had been so steadily fixed on the panda warriors in the courtyard suddenly jumped to the panda beside her, and her heart went out to him. Po looked more unsettled had she'd ever seen him, his body was rigid, his eyes widened, and his mouth was slack.

Tigress knew Po believed both his parents to be dead; he had told her the story himself. Of how his father had fought off the wolves while his mother took their son and disappeared into the woods. Po had told her she had left him in a radish bin, sacrificing herself for him. They were his saviors, in his mind they had given up everything for him. They were supposed to have died for him, their only son, their little boy.

And here was a man, who had just tortured and slew an innocent being, or what she knew of was innocent, and he claimed to be Po Ping's father. Tigress was enraged. He didn't deserve this; Po had never deserved any of this. Not being blown to bits by a canon, not how he had grown up without a mother, not the way he had been judged as he became the Dragon Warrior, and certainly _not _this crazed murderer as a father. She turned to Po to find he hadn't moved an inch, and then suddenly it seemed to hit him.

His eyes furrowed and darkened dangerously, and Tigress knew rage was pounding through him by the way his muscles rippled along his arms and the fur bristling across his back. She tensed, she knew anger when she saw it; after all she had experienced it enough. Tigress knew how destructive it could be, especially to someone who didn't know how to channel it. She watched carefully, and when Po began to rise from where he was lying on his stomach she placed a hand behind his neck, keeping him pushed down.

"Po, no," Tigress whispered sharply, "you swore to me you wouldn't do anything stupid."

Po grabbed her wrist and shoved her away. His eyes were a blaze of green fire, "I'll kill him." At this she backed down briefly in surprise, the panda wasn't the threatening type. "I'll kill him for saying that. He isn't my father, my father is dead!" Po growled deeply, and Tigress shivered at the noise. It sounded like a dragon; she hadn't known bears could make such a sound, least of all Po. "He'll wish he's dead when I'm through with him…"

He moved to stand again, and Tigress bound an iron grip around his upper arm to keep him in place. She squeezed just enough so that his bones refrained from cracking and released a growl of her own. Po hardly even winced. "You will not touch him," she hissed as he fought to get free.

"I'll punch his face in!" Po shot back and Tigress noticed his whole body was quivering.

"No, you are better than that."

"I'm going to tear him limb from limb."

"No. Po, you're not goi-"

"You can't stop! Mphmm…" Tigress slammed her paw over his mouth before his voice raised too much. They had almost given away their cover and she glanced down at the panda and his troop to find them glancing around with mild confusion. From under her paw, Po was still trying to blabber and his muffles were louder than they should be.

"Shut up, Po!" she said roughly, causing him to slack off for a moment. His eyes found hers for a moment and they stared at each other in desperation. "Shut up before you get us caught." At this his gaze softened, and Tigress knew he immediately felt guilty for how he had acted. "No, Po, it's not that. You have every right to be angry, but as Masters we must control our feelings. There will be a time for this… but not now, alright?"

She waited until he nodded against her paw before releasing him and allowing him to speak. Tigress grasped his fingers between her own, "I need you to concentrate… I can't do this by myself."

Again he nodded in agreement, but Tigress could still feel his paws shaking, the anger still very much present. When he spoke again it was carefully quiet and his words were raspy and hushed. "…Ti… Tigress, if he's my… father, then I can't… I can't do this."

Tigress frowned softly as she tried to find her voice. "Listen to me," she said firmly, acting the part she knew so well, "Po, you are more than what that man is down there. And China forbid, but even if he is who he says he is, that does not make him your "father". You already have a father, and he's probably cutting noodles back in his shop as we speak. This man can only be your sire, that's all he is. He isn't your parent, he never raised you, and therefore you are not him."

Po stared at her, eyes heavy and glistening, "I can't go near him… I'll break his neck or something if I do. I can't touch him, or any of them! I can't hurt them..."

"I'm not asking that of you," Tigress told him, putting a comforting hand under his chin, "but I am asking that you be strong for me. This is still a mission and we still need to find out why they're here."

There was a long silence after that, where both panda and tiger examined each other cautiously, not knowing what the other was going to do next. Tigress felt for him, really she did. She knew what it was like to not have family, but this was more than she could imagine, and putting herself in Po's shoes at the moment wasn't too easy. Tigress could never perfectly understand his torn feelings of how he wanted to hurt this man who called himself Nigulasi, but also at the same time not let harm fall on him. She knew this wasn't at all ideal, but their lives could be in danger and she must make sure Po kept a steady head. Tigress needed to be the leader she had been on all the other missions, but for some reason this time it seemed too much of a job for her to fulfill.

During her thoughts Po had managed to stop shaking as much. His face looked a little calmer as he let out a small cough, "Alright… so what's the plan?"

She pondered for a moment without coming up with an answer. What would be the most promising course of action to take? Should they escape while they could and get back to the Five who were without a doubt still waiting on their return? Or should they keep quiet and wait to see what the pandas and Nigulasi would do when they didn't show up like he had planned? Tigress' tactful mind breezed over the options before she let out a low sigh and slithered away from the edge of the rooftop briskly, Po following close behind.

"…So?" he asked when they were far enough into the shadows that they could rise to their feet without being seen.

She brushed the cave dust off her black slacks, "Let's find a closer place to hide, and we'll observe them further."

"And then?"

"And then…" Tigress murmured, still oddly unsure of herself. She felt like she was falling into a trap even when she knew there was no possible way for Nigulasi to be aware of their presence. _Everything is possible, _drifted through the back of her head, but she swatted it away like an irritating fly. They had no time to think about Oogway's famous proverbs. Proverbs would not solve this mission. "And then when they realize that we're not going to show up we will track them deeper into the caves of the city."

Po frowned in puzzlement, "but how do you know that's where they'll go?"

"Because that is where the treasure in Cavern City lies. There is a reason few know where this place is, Po, and that's because it's a hiding ground for ancient objects and trinkets. Past Emperors, Lords, heroes, and even Kung Fu Masters have placed items of worth deep within the tunnels, so deep that light has never touched its hallowed stones. And each tunnel is guarded by the Bengal tigers. It has been their duty to watch over the treasure for hundreds of years."

His eyes widened and he motioned to the marble courtyard bellow them in shock. "So that tiger down there? That … guy that they…"

"Murdered. That "guy" that they murdered," Tigress finished for him with a nod, "Yes, he was a guard for the sacred treasure. They killed him to show us how powerful they are. A dead tiger is not an easy feat to accomplish, but they also proved by kidnapping him and dragging him out here that they know the way into the tunnels."

Po was listening intently; after all he never missed a "history class", especially when it came from her. She watched as he shuffled his feet in thought. "So how come they just haven't taken the treasure and got out of here already?" He glanced at her in confusion, before something seemed to click in his head and confusion melted to understanding. "Oh… they don't want the treasure, do they?"

Tigress smirked approvingly at Po's wit of piecing all the information together. "Correct, Dragon Warrior. Legend tells of another secret haven within Cavern City. An "invisible room" that holds forbidden artifacts that have a darker usage than just monetary value."

"Okay… care to speak in a language I actually understand?"

"They have powers, Po," Tigress explained simply as she rolled her scarlet eyes. "Those objects were locked away in such isolation and secrecy because they were dangerous. For example; have you ever heard of the Everlaster's Rod?"

Po's eyes doubled in size and he was suddenly nose to nose with her, his face unbelieving. "Oh wow! You mean Lord Siwang Guang's bamboo staff that he had during the second dynasty? The one that when he pointed it at someone it would suck the life right out of them? That's awesome!"

"It did more than suck the life out of his victims," Tigress informed smugly.

Po had fully transformed into his fan-boy alter ego now. "What?" Seriously?"

"The rod stole the total years of life that fate had supplied to a person and gave it to its holder. The Everlaster's Rod made its Master, in a sense… everlasting," Tigress held back a smile as Po's mouth opened even further to form a complete circle. "Haven't you ever wondered why Lord Guang lived to see the rise of the third dynasty? He was nine-hundred and eighty-six years of age when the rod was finally taken from him. Without it he lost the life he had stolen and didn't even make it to see the next morning's sunrise."

Po's reaction was long coming, but it came after he got over the "awesomeness" that he had just heard. "Okay… you should tell stories more often! That was freaking cool!"

"Po…" Tigress said as she found her eyes rolling yet again, "that wasn't the point I was trying to prove."

"Oh, yeah I know," he told her with a smirk, "but when we get back I'm kidnapping you and tying you to my bedpost and then you're going to tell me all kinds of stories!"

"… Er… I don't think it would be the swellest idea to hold me captive in your room…" Tigress murmured awkwardly as the smallest of blushes covered her silky cheeks. Po reddened too at his previous comment, and she could tell he was mental slapping himself.

Po shuffled and clapped his hands together lightly, "Anyways… I guess we should, you know, be moving on and stuff?"

"Yes, of course."

Just like that Po's gaze went from an embarrassed, happy-go-lucky nature into a deep-set seriousness that matched her own perfectly. It wasn't time for their bizarre flirting games, or whatever always seemed to transpire between the two Masters. It was, in Po's words: "go time". Tigress tensed and retreated further back into the shadows on top of the roof. Her slender form was followed closely by the panda, their movements silent and careful.

Tigress turned back to him, fingering downwards, towards their feet. "If we get to the lower floors, we can find a window close to the ground that will allow us to get a better visual on the troops."

At the mention of the pandas Po looked instantly stricken, however he masked it quick enough with a determined face. _You're not supposed to be the one hiding your emotions, _Tigress whispered internally as she eyed him, _that's my job. _Po never hid how he felt, whatever pleased him to say, he said it. His actions mirrored the thoughts that flashed through his head, and Tigress didn't enjoy seeing him trying to suddenly keep it all in. Nigulasi could very well be Po's long lost, thought to be dead, sire… he was supposed to be freaking out right now. This quiet, everything-is-fine air that radiated from him disturbed her.

Unable to control herself, she reached out for him, but at the last second he pulled away from her paw. "Po-"

"Come on," He mumbled hesitantly as he stumbled over to the edge of the roof, "let's go."

Without another word Po launched himself off the roof with a grace Tigress didn't even know he possessed and grasped the sill as he fell. He twirled through the air and directed himself in through the window and on the floor below in silence. Tigress stared after him for a moment, and as she stood there, a lone shadow on the rooftop, there was a twinge in her stomach. This was simply supposed to be an easy in, easy out observation before bringing in the rest of the Five, but now it was so much more than that. A Bengal Guard of Cavern City was dead, murdered by a group of pandas working for some mysterious "Master", Po was emotional unstable, and she couldn't shake the feeling that a trap lay ahead. Her glowing orbs shut briefly as Tigress pinched the bridge of her snout. She could only hope Viper, Mantis, Monkey, and Crane were fairing better than Po and herself.

Without making the Dragon Warrior wait any longer, she followed him off the roof and in through the window below. She was so caught up in her thoughts that Tigress wobbled when she landed, and hit the floor through the window unsteadily, almost falling over.

No, things were definitely _not_ as they should be.

_::_

"I hate this!" Viper exclaimed. She was slithering back and forth in front of the tree, boring a path into the dusty ground beneath her. This was her own form of pacing and she had been doing it for the past half hour. Her eyes remained trained on the mouth of Cavern City constantly, the blue in them ignited to such a ferocity it almost seemed that they were glowing in the dusky darkness. The glow made her look like her fellow tiger Master; the very one she was waiting on right now. "I hate this."

Crane sighed and half jumped, half glided down from his perch in the old tree, landing directly in front of Viper. He blocked her path. "Okay, just relax, Viper," he said, wings up in the air in front of him, "they'll come. Po and Tigress know what they're doing."

Viper swatted Crane's wings away with the tip of her tail in an arching, swish-like movement. "Yeah, right, and while you're at it you should just tell me I have legs! Don't lie Crane. Ever since we got rid of Shen those two have had no sweet clue what they're doing, no matter how much they try to hide it!"

"Preach it," Mantis lulled from up on the branch he was sprawled lazily on. "Po's all 'Tigress is SO awesome, but she's just my friend', and Tigress is just acting like she's in heat or something. She's always with him, talking to him, laughing with him…. It's creepy man."

Crane practically face-palmed. "I wasn't talking about them personally, I meant this mission. They know what their job is."

"Still… I think they should have at least come back by now." Monkey put in as he entered the conversation. His furred body was hanging upside down by his tail off a different branch.

All four stared up briefly into the sky, dark with night except for the few stars that had managed to show up ahead of the others. It had been hours since they left. Three and a half to be exact.

"They'll come," Mantis said softly, cracking the uneasy stillness, "and we'll stay until they do."

So that was it then. They would stay put until Tigress and Po emerged. Insect, snake, aviator, and simian all fell silent; they knew they would stay by the tree for years if they had to. Never would they abandon their fellow Masters, not to mention friends.

"Tigress always says "the battlefield is no place for our sentiments", ironically she and Po always seem to be the only ones going against that," Viper mused, a small flicker of her previous irritation still present in her voice, but it was dying out quickly. She curled up the tree and settled on the branch next to Monkey's tail.

Mantis peered over at her. His eyes were honestly curious, and proved he wasn't just trying to be mischievous. "Do you think… that they really do have… Po and Tigress I mean. Well… you know…"

"Sentiments for one another?" Viper asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yeah, I guess that's how you put it."

"Who knows?" Monkey sighed.

Crane alighted beside them, ruffling his feathers and tucking in his wings. He looked beat, and much more tired than usual. "They do."

Viper picked up on the bird's agitated demeanor and threw him a questioning look, but he simply ignored it. Crane stared up into the night sky with shoulders slumped forwards wearily. Mantis, who was lying on his back, placed his mandibles behind his head.

"And how come they haven't told each other this?" he asked.

Viper would have shrugged if it were bodily possible; instead she just wrapped herself in a tighter circle to fend off the cold. "Tigress thinks she'll hurt Po. Po thinks he would never be able to be the one he believes Tigress deserves. They're scared."

Mantis whistled into the night at the unneeded complexity of the entire situation. "That's… messed up."

"Yup," Viper agreed.

Monkey, who had been relatively untalkative, suddenly spoke up. "Do you think they'll ever just throw caution to the wind and go for it?"

Viper had no sweet clue. She was about to tell him so when she was interrupted by Crane. "It's Tigress and Po. When do they ever do anything that we think they're going to do?"

"Never," Monkey nodded, "but if you had to say either "yes" or "no", what would you say?'

"No," Mantis told him.

"Yes," Viper announced.

"I'd say that whatever they choose it's none of our business." Crane informed, once again making the others feel childish for intruding in on their friends' lives without their permission. Something was bothering Crane; Viper knew that for sure as she glanced over at him yet again. He knew something. Or at least had a hunch about it. "Our job is to play our rolls as their friends and support them. That is all."

Everyone was relatively quiet after that. Mantis complained briefly about how comfortable falling asleep in a tree would be if they had to spend the night. Shortly later the sky darkened from navy to black, the remainder of the stars appeared and twinkled down on them, and they knew staying the night was exactly what they were going to do. Surprisingly even though he was the one who grumbled about it, Mantis was the first to fall into a restless sleep. His even breathing filled the air, his appendages twitching while he dreamed. Monkey followed soon after, and his soft snores made Viper smile.

She watched them both without a sound, simply staring fondly at her companions. They were her brothers and irreplaceable warriors, but they held a boyish quality that made their team have a deep-set family feel. Mantis and Monkey were nearsighted, jokers, laughing at everything, and often missed the point; much unlike another certain member of the Furious Five. Viper glanced over at him from the corner of her eye.

Crane was still very much awake, despite how exhausted he looked. His gaze never left the mouth of Cavern City as he kept watch for any sight of Tigress or Po. Crane was the opposite of Monkey and Mantis. He was intuitive, and had this weird ability to always understand a situation before any of the other boys had a clue. Viper knew he was smarter than he was willing to let on. She also knew that something was on his mind.

"Hey," she whispered, not wanting to wake the other two. Crane didn't even seem stunned that she hadn't been asleep. He acknowledged her only with the slightest turn of his head. "Any sign of them?"

"None," he sighed.

"Take a rest. I can watch for awhile."

Crane shook his head. "Its fine, I'm not tired."

Sometimes he was as stubborn as Tigress. Viper made a face at him since he wasn't facing her to be able to see it and outstretched her tail. She laid it on his back, giving him a little shake. "Crane," she said sternly, worry laced through her tone, "What's the matter?"

She had often been able to get through to him when something was bothering him. They had been friends for a long time, and secrets weren't something they kept from each other. They were more alike than they cared to admit. Talking was what they did.

Finally, Crane looked back at her. "Viper," he murmured slowly, "Something is going to happen."

Her guard was up in an instant. Viper stared back at the bird hesitantly, and her forked tongue poked out from between her lips as she tasted the air. Crane was more intuitive than most, it was true, but there was something else too. He always managed to know when something was about to go wrong. It was like a bird moving to higher ground before a storm, Crane became unsettled right before something terrible took place. It wasn't chance, it wasn't coincidence, and it wasn't something to be taken lightly.

Crane had predicted the return of Tai-Lung. Weeks before he escaped prison and even before Po was chosen as Dragon Warrior, Crane had met privately with Master Shifu. He had told him he thought Shifu should check on the guards of Chorh-Gom prison and make sure they were adequate enough to hold their prisoner. Shifu never acted on it, but it had been part of the reason he was so bent on doubling the guards after Oogway's vision.

And there had been other incidents too. Weird moments of distress days before a few tricky bandit situations, protectiveness over Po before the panda had discovered his past, and of course the nightmares before Master Rhino was killed and Shen made his first appearance. Viper shuddered. Yes, she remembered the nightmares. Her bedroom was the only one beside Crane's and she had been the only one who heard his shouts. For days he'd wake in a flurry of pleas and uncontrollable cries. Twice Viper had snuck into his room to calm him out of hysterics; she shushed him lightly, stroked his feathers, whispered incoherent comforts, and stayed until he had drifted off to sleep again. They never spoke of those nights, but they had played over and over in both their heads many times.

Viper watched him carefully now, knowing that when Crane said something was going to happen, he wasn't playing with her. Something was going to happen. "Nightmares?" she asked, because they seemed to take place before the worst things.

He nodded, and suddenly it made sense why he seemed so tired. "I woke up before I could make any noise though," Crane told her.

Viper had a terrible mental picture of her friend lying in bed with a balled up fist stuffed in his mouth, trying to muffle his frantic cries. Tears pricking his eyes as he was caught halfway between his dreams and reality. She wanted to hiss at him and tell him to wake her up next time, that she really didn't mind. She'd rather be worried for Crane and know what was going on, than sleep peacefully through the night and be oblivious.

"How bad were they?" she questioned.

Crane visibly trembled at the thought. "Very," he said softly, "and that's not all either."

There were more than nightmares? Viper cringed, this wasn't good. "What else?"

"I get these pictures in my head at weird times. Once I saw three pearls in a circle. One time there was an ocean, but it was black and white instead of blue. And today I saw a necklace with a piece of firestone on it."

Viper eyed him, and a moment of confusion passed between the two of them. They had no sweet clue what visions like that were supposed to mean, or if they were even visions at all. She had personally never considered mental pictures that were slapped into your head as something mystical, or important for that matter. However, Crane obviously thought they represented something, and Crane was never wrong.

"Do you have any idea what they mean?" Viper questioned, already knowing the answer.

Crane shook him head, signifying no.

Without another word he went back to gazing at the night sky. Viper knew he was going to deny any thoughts he had on the pictures, that was a given. If someone wanted information from Crane they had to work for it, he was never the kind of person to just hand it over. But that was what she did, she worked for it. Viper knew he did have at least some insight to what his visions meant, no matter if he let on or not. The off-set look in his eyes gave him away, and Viper guessed that whatever he thought about the visions wasn't exactly positive.

All this made her uneasy, and as she curled back into the rest of her coils her stomach knotted. Viper sighed into the night. If a nervous feeling had represented Tai-Lung's return and nightmares had foretold Shen's rise to power, then what were visions _and _nightmares supposed to mean? Her mind couldn't imagine it.

"Crane…" she whispered out again, her ponderings getting the best of her.

"Yeah?"

"When did you start to have these… feelings… again?"

Crane glanced back at Mantis and Monkey before he answered, and Viper guessed he was checking that they were both sound asleep. "Do you remember that day, a week after coming back from Gongmen City and we started training again?"

Viper nodded with raised eyebrows, not getting the connection.

"Remember when we teased Tigress and Po for going off to the Ironwood trees to spar as soon as training started?"

It had only been a few days since their return and training was what they were all looking forward to. They desperately wanted to get back to their lives, their schedule, and at least some form of normalcy. However, the four of them had thought it was weird how Tigress and Po didn't even spend a minute in the training hall. They went directly to the ironwoods, claiming they needed to work on Po's blocks. Even though what they had told them was honest and true (Viper had spied on them just to make sure) their two friends had definitely set themselves up for rounds of teasing. And teasing wasn't exactly something Crane, Mantis, and Monkey tended to miss out on.

"Mantis told them they must have been pretty desperate for a making-out spot if they were willing to skip training for it," Viper smirked, she recalled Po's redder than radish face, and Mantis' bruises he had received from the feline Master for daring to even think something like that. Tigress had been livid for the remainder of the day, and her and Po didn't go back to work on his blocks until two whole weeks later.

Viper was torn from her thoughts when she realized Crane wasn't bringing this up for fun or to reminisce. He had a motive. He always had a motive. She turned back to find his eyes trained on hers, he blinked twice before murmuring in an unsure voice. "Viper… that day was when the nightmares began," he breathed heavily and looked down.

It took a full minute to grasp just what he was trying to say. And then it hit her. Viper's blood ran cold and she tensed, her gaze darting to the entrance of the cavern city. "You think whatever is going to happen is going to hurt Tigress and Po," she stated.

"No," Crane told her gently, "I think that no matter what happens Po and Tigress are going to end up hurting each other." After that the aviator fell silent, having said more than enough for one night. He left a very confused, very worried snake unable to fall asleep.

_::_

_**6:30 am,**_ _**the following morning, Cavern City **_

She awoke to something gnawing at her insides, making her knees tremble slightly. Tigress snapped her large eyes open. Hunger. She was hungry. Her stomach growled deeply, an irritated beast who had forgotten to be fed… she was very hungry.

Tigress hadn't thought of bringing food with her, and neither had Po because both believed this mission would have been long over by now. She yawned and ran a tired paw across her forehead. She had fallen asleep in her regular lotus flower position, sitting with her legs crossed and her back propped against the pale wall. They were in one of the buildings near the courtyard, somewhere in a second story bedroom where they would be able to hear if Nigulasi decided to stop waiting for the Dragon Warrior to show up in front of him. They were holding out to see what course of action he would take, and where he would go.

She placed a paw over her middle, holding in a gurgle and diverted her gaze up towards the black and white mass that was spread out on the stone bed. They had picked the bedroom to hide in because it had not a single window overlooking the courtyard, which meant less chance of the panda troops spotting them. The matter of who got to take the bed wasn't really a problem. Po may have insisted she could have it a first, but she quickly reminded him she didn't sleep lying down. She sat in meditation before falling asleep, and having the bed when he could actually use it for its intended purpose seemed pointless. Besides, sleeping in a bed made of rock wasn't that appealing to her.

Tigress watched him silently. She could wake him up, but what for? They were playing the waiting game. It was their opponent's turn to make a move and until that happened there wasn't anything to be done. Tigress settled back against the wall and shut her eyes, but only seconds later they snapped open again.

She was troubled, troubled over that big fat panda meters away from her. Tigress watched as his body rose and fell evenly while he breathed. Po had sprawled himself out over the entire bed and one of his thick arms was hanging over the edge, his foot moved occasionally as he dreamed. She took a deep intake of breath and fingered the hem of her vest wearily.

Tigress had hoped to talk to Po last night before they went to sleep and try to understand what was exactly going through his head. However, it hadn't happened according to plan. She was actually more confused than before, and now wanted to pound her fists through the stone wall. Tigress believed that Po was simply out of sorts from the news of Nigulasi, but last night told her that that wasn't the only thing on his mind. The fact was: _she _was on his mind. She was his best friend, and now a burden to him as well. And their little slip in the alley the previous day hadn't helped the situation in the slightest either.

Tigress stared, her eyes drilling holes into the bed. She internally scolded herself on how foolish she had been as bits and pieces of last night drifted through her head.

_**The previous evening… **_

"_Listen Tigress, I really think you should get the bed," he insisted, pushing her towards it lightly, "I'm gentlemaness enough to let you have it." _

_Tigress rolled her eyes, the smirk still present on her face. "Po…" she said slowly as she turned her back to him to glance out the window, ""gentlemaness" is not a word, and if you can recall I sleep sitting up." _

_Po frowned at her, his green eyes somehow brighter in the semi-darkness as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. Tigress didn't even acknowledge his disapproving stare, figuring that if she drew attention to it he'd double his antics. Instead she walked over to the other side of the room and started unfastening the first latch on her shirt. Po blushed and then paled. _

"_Wha… what are you doing…?" He asked in shock, blocking his view with his paw. _

_She glanced up at him in confusion, and then realized what it must look like. Tigress chuckled at his innocence, "Relax Po, I just needed to check the map." _

_His hand lowered slightly as he watched her hesitantly. Tigress went no further than undoing the first latch, and reached inside a hidden pocket on the flipside of her vest. When she hauled her paw back there was a perfectly folded piece of parchment in her grip and then Tigress fastened the latch once more. She waved it in front of her loosely. "See? Simply a map." _

"_Oh," Po managed, his voice sounding relieved and his shoulders slumped comfortably once more, "yeah, that's what I figured you were doing… checking the map or something…" _

_After that they settled down on the floor with the parchment spread out between them. It was a detailed description of Cavern City, one she had swiped from Shifu's study before they had set off. Tigress had all intentions of returning it to him with an apology later on. They poured over the map for a long while, noting that the city ran almost fifteen kilometers into the mountain. They were close enough to the entrance to be in the outskirts of Cavern City, and the map showed that seven kilometers in was the main fortress where the city's high council ruled. Past all that, towards the end of the map, were a series of winding and twisting routes that Tigress identified as the Hidden Tunnels. It was where the valuable objects were stored, and where Nigulasi had come from, but it wasn't what they were searching for. _

_Tigress and Po stared and examined the map over and over again, looking for any sign of where the forbidden, dangerous artifacts could be found. She was actually growing fed up when finally Po pointed to a small, unsuspecting tunnel that went seventy five meters deep and led to a dead end. Or was it a dead end? At the end of the tunnel, was a barely noticeable scribble of calligraphy. Tigress recognized it immediately, it was Shifu's scratchy print, and her stomach tensed as she read what it said. _

_**The Tomb of Bao, the resting place of many. **_

"_Bao means treasure," Po mumbled out loud, and Tigress' head spun into full gear. _

_She nodded, staring down at the parchment with new interest, "Of course, "tomb" means "to be buried". The tomb of treasure, the resting place of many… the place where much treasure is buried. That is the invisible room." _

_Tigress began to fold the map back into squares as Po watched uneasily. "Ti… if Shifu knew where it was, then he's been there before." _

"_Yes," she agreed, ignoring his nickname for her and tucking the map away and back into her vest, "and that is where we will be going as well." _

_Po sat in silence, his gaze directed downwards and his thumbs twiddling incessantly. She watched him out of the corner of her eye carefully, deciding that now was the time to get through to him. Come tomorrow, she may not have the chance. But still Tigress paused, for words had never been her forté. She stood, gazed out the window at the courtyard to find Nigulasi and his followers in the same place she'd left them, and slowly made her way back towards Po. Tigress knelt down in front of the panda on one knee and when he refused to meet her amber eyes she hooked a claw under his chin gently, bringing his face towards hers. _

"_I am a being who prefers to mind her own business," she said slowly, matter-of-factly, "I do not pry into peoples' lives. I don't comfort others when they feel lost. I believe the troubles of life are mysteries we must unravel on our own. So for me to be sitting here before you now, asking you to explain to me what's on your mind shows how concerned I am. I cannot heal you, Po, we both know that, but confiding in someone can relieve the stress of a situation." Tigress released her hold on his chin and moved from directly in front of him to his left side. She settled beside him and laced her paws over her lap. "So I repeat: what is going through your head, panda?" _

_Po didn't say anything for a long time and she began to fear her efforts were all in vain and that she had just placed her heart on her sleeve for nothing. Until finally, a weary breath escaped his nose and he fidgeted briefly in one spot. _

"_He has my eyes." _

_Tigress turned her gaze downwards, she hadn't been expecting that. Nigulasi's head flashed across her mind and his hard piercing eyes burned. Green eyes, the same jade ones that Po was using to stare at her right at that very instant. She opened her mouth to speak, but no noise came from her throat. What was she supposed to say? _

_Po wasn't waiting for her to say anything though, and so he continued on. "Those are my eyes on his face. And if he can share that with me I keep thinking of all the other things we could have in common. Like if he wanted to learn kung fu since he was a cub. Or if he ever thought he wasn't good enough. Or if I could betray my race, become a murderer and go after my long lost son too." _

_She remained speechless, trying to think of something to comfort him that she hadn't already said before. "You… you aren't him, Po. I know it feels like-" _

"_Then who the heck am I?" he demanded suddenly, throwing his arms up in the air. "The Dragon Warrior? Yeah, maybe. Po Ping? Definitely. But I mean in here…" Po placed a hand on his furry chest and looked down at himself as if seeing himself for the first time. He glanced up at her in confusion. "I don't know who I'm supposed to be anymore. It's all so messed up." _

_A sigh filled the air, and then she realized it had come from her. "I can't tell you who you are, Po. It is your responsibility to find out for yourself. However, I don't believe for a moment you will turn into someone even remotely close to Nigulasi." Tigress stared straight ahead in concentration, wanting to pick her words ever so carefully. "At some point in time we all second guess ourselves, but you will find who you're supposed to be. In the mean time remember you are not alone. You have an adoptive father who loves you very much, a Master who will forever be proud of you, and companions who care." _

_His eyes lingered on the stone floor for a moment longer before he raised his face to meet hers. Po looked relieved, reassured even, but something else was still amiss. Before she could inquire further, a furred hand covered hers and clung to her paw tightly. "And I have you…" Po murmured softly, hesitantly as if he was testing out the words. _

_The mind is a silly thing, but the heart is even more so. Tigress had always known it could not be trusted, but the way the panda's features were highlighted in the semi-darkness, and the way his eyes shone, and even the way they were leaning towards each other expectantly caused all her grips on self-discipline to slip away. Their three minutes in the alley resurfaced in the back of her mind, and she remembered the intense itching feeling that had ran through her limbs. The feeling of for the first time wanting to be close to someone, to display just how deep her sentiments went. She wanted that, she wanted it so very badly. _

_For a moment Tigress came to her senses, and halted moving towards him inches before it would have been too late to resist. She put a steady paw on his shoulder and cleared her voice, "you do have me, Po. I will be here for you, but this is not going to fix you, if anything it will only make it worse. We can't do this." _

_However, instead of backing away Po simply smiled, releasing his hold on her clawed fingers and letting his paw travel up her arm. "Tigress," he told her gently, his tone light and friendly as always despite the fact that they were so close. "It's me. You're my best friend. This won't change how I feel. I care about you, a kiss can't mess that up." He released her suddenly and leaned back against the wall. "But I'm not going to make you do anything you'll regret either." _

_Tigress sat there, her hand still outstretched from where it had been resting on his shoulder. A kiss? Was that what they had been talking about? She didn't know he could be that serious, and it placed her off guard. He had said a kiss wouldn't mess anything up, but how could he know that for sure? Then again, how would she know if she never tried? And she very much wanted to try. Tigress licked her lips, feeling sickeningly desperate. She was leaning back to return into her previous position against the wall when something got the best of her. Master Tigress had followed commands and rituals, and had been hard and unemotional for the whole of her life. One slip in her flawless reputation wouldn't do her in. Besides, kissing Po was a slip she thought was worthy of being made. _

_Pushing mental images of a disappointed Shifu out of her head, Tigress moved forwards and reached for Po. He had been studying her, waiting to see what she would do, and he met her halfway, placing his paw into her open hand. Po turned so that he was facing her squarely and for a drawn out instant an uncomfortable silence enveloped them both. Calculating every move, Po placed his forehead against Tigress' carefully, examining her glowing orbs intensely to the point where she felt shakily nervous. _

"_Ti… I really do care about you, you know?" he said, his hands on her sides. "Like a lot." _

_She didn't know how to respond, this was all so completely and irrationally insane. Tigress put a paw on the top of his arm. Why was her pulse so fast? The rushing blood made her lightheaded, but not in a bad way… it was actually quite pleasant, which of course made no sense at all. She closed her eyes and a low hum came from somewhere implacable inside her. When she opened them she found Po smirking at her. _

"_Didn't know tigers purred," he told her, trying to say it in his naturally humorous way, but his voice cracked in the middle of the word "tigers" from his nervousness. _

_Their eyes blazed against each other as they stared. "Every once in a while, when there's a good purpose for it," Tigress admitted slowly, her tone sounded rich and alluring even to her. It terrified her. _

_Po gulped; his paws loosened briefly before hauling her closer and suddenly they were nose to nose. Her other paw stopped over the right side of his chest to find that his heartbeat was going absolutely crazy. Very much similar to her own. She licked her lips again, waiting for him to do something, anything, but Po simply sat there wide eyed. He opened his mouth and made a strangled noise, however before he could say whatever he was planning on saying Tigress covered it up with three fingers. _

"_Po," she murmured, tilting her head to the side. "I think this is the part where we both shut up and you kiss me. Hurry now, before I change my mind." _

_He nodded against her hand and she masked the mini anxiety attack she was having with a half-smile as she uncovered his mouth. Po paused for only a second and then leaned in, and as he did Tigress' breath hitched in her throat. His nose bumped against hers clumsily, but she didn't seem to notice; they were both complete strangers to this kind of thing. Tigress felt her face burning red as his nose brushed hers, moving closer until it rested against her cheek. His green gaze looked back at her unwaveringly and his paw touched the side of her jaw. _

"_Close your eyes," Po whispered. _

_And she did. _

_**The present day… **_

Tigress refused to think about the rest. She placed a hand over her forehead as a shameful gust of air made its way out of her nostrils. She wasn't designed to deal with this. With pandas, or Dragon Warriors, or sentiments, or any of it! And yet… she found it all so enticing. The idea that she was completely insane did cross her mind after allowing Po to even ask to kiss her, let alone actually kiss her. Tigress stared at him on the other side of the room as he snored, feeling bare and unguarded.

"_You have done it this time, haven't you?" _she growled at herself.

The part that shook her most wasn't that she'd kissed Po, or even that she'd enjoyed it, she knew she was going to enjoy it the moment she told him to do it. No, what shook her was that she hadn't wanted it to end. If Tigress could have stayed with him like that for hours she would have, and that made her uneasy. She had never lost control on herself like this before. It was as if there had been no discipline to start with.

Plus, there was the necklace hanging around Po's neck, the one she had given him after the kiss. It was simple, just a firestone attached to a thread; but Tigress had never spontaneously given anything to anyone. At the time it seemed sincere, but now as she looked at it all she saw were silent promises she didn't know if she could keep. The firestone gem she'd had for months after spotting it and picking it up one day on the way back from a mission. The string was from her vest, a loose thread she'd been meaning to pull out. It had only taken seconds to construct, Po had watched her in confusion until she'd fastened it around him while whispering that as long as it was there she would be there as well. Tigress hadn't really known exactly what she had meant by that, nor did she want to figure it out.

She had felt love before, for her friends, and for her masters, and even for the people of China. She knew what it could do, and how it could drive someone to battle as it had often enough for herself. It was powerful and bold; when she had been a cub it was the one thing she had to prove she wasn't "a monster". Love, no matter what gossip would say, was something Tigress was quite familiar with.

But it had never been to this extent. Her feelings for the panda were vast, with a depth that surpassed anything she had known to be possible. Tigress hadn't realized that she could feel this way. Giving her life up was something she would gladly do for anyone… but giving her life _to _someone… well she'd never really considered it. And suddenly she felt as if she would hand it to Po without a second thought. He could have it, he would treasure her as a companion, as a dear friend, or even as something more; Po wouldn't drop her, or crack her, or try to change her. She'd be safe with him. Even if Tigress wasn't safe with him, even if he spat on her and trampled her beneath his feet, she'd still hand her devotion over. Just as long as he stayed safe and no harm came his way, she knew if she was by his side there would be a slim chance of anything hurting him. The idea, even if she would never admit it openly, pleased Tigress. The thought of being in Po's company and for always staying by his side created a deep-set yearning inside her chest.

The whole idea was foolish. They couldn't stay like this forever. Eventually, the years would pass and she would continue in kung fu, for she was sure that was her purpose, and Po would continue being the Dragon Warrior of China. When his training was complete he could no longer stay in the Jade Palace, he must defend the nation, no matter where that will take him. Perhaps to the borders of China where foreign realms try to defeat the Emperor's soldiers, or maybe to the capitol to advise the Emperor himself on battle strategies, whatever the case Po's journey was not hers. And she would not be able to follow him, someday they would part ways. He will at some point find himself a wife from the thousands of young women who strive to be noticed by him, and he will have a family. And she will go down in the scrolls of history as the Master who lived a life of solitude, who's duty belonged to kung fu, and who died alone.

Tigress hung her head in bitterness, fists curled in distaste. If only she was free to choose her life as with all the ordinary citizens of China. They held the most important authority of all: they were capable of deciding the path of their own lives. However, fate had bound her to the role of being a leader, being a rock in a raging storm for others to cling to when they so desperately needed help. Never would she be able to cling to anything, never would free will be hers. The betterment of China would always weigh on her actions; the leader who held the position of authority, but not able to make her own decisions. Tigress was a Master of Kung Fu, a warrior of China, the symbol of liberty… and yet, she was trapped.

Her eyes shifted up to the panda and a dark sadness rushed through her. If she could choose her life she knew in that moment what she would pick: a life with Po. But it didn't matter what she wanted,

It had never mattered…

And it never would.

_::_

He was stupid. So very, very stupid. An Idiot.

Those were the first thoughts that welcomed him into the waking world as Po began to shift back from dreams to consciousness. For a moment he was confused. What was it that he had done again? He knew it was something, but his mind was clogged with sleep. His eyes opened and stared at the stone wall opposite him; unwillingly he heaved himself into a sitting position, allowing his furred legs to hang over the edge of the hard bed.

By reflex his paw shot up and rubbed at his eyes before running over the top of his head. Po glanced out the window, wondering why it was still so dark out until he realized they were still in Cavern City.

They…

His gaze shot around the room and fell on the huddled form backed up against the wall at the foot of the bed. Tigress sat motionless, her long arms wrapped around her knees and her chin resting on top of them. Eyes glowing intensely from her shadowed corner, she didn't do as much as blink, but simply watched him. Her expression lacked the total calm she usually held; her mouth was frowning and her brows were knitted together. Po's gaze dropped down to the necklace around his thick neck, guilt washing over him as he reached up and gently brushed it with his fingers.

He was so stupid. An idiot.

His eyes immediately jumped back to Tigress, wide and alarmed as he remembered just what they had done. How he had started it. She hadn't moved in the slightest, it was as if she was frozen in place and Po felt something inside him tugging for him to go over to her. To let her know he was there, but he doubted she would even want him near her, not now. Po glanced down and then back up and then down again, waiting for her to do something; he wanted her to move, to breathe, to do anything, but she remained completely still. Devoid of that all too familiar smirk and the spark in her orange eyes was missing too.

Maybe if he could just open his mouth and say something, maybe his words would come out right for once. Po forced his stare back onto hers, "I-"

"I'm going to take watch."

Her sentence was out before he had managed a single syllable, and her body soon followed. She picked herself up and was out the door before he could comprehend what was happening, her form marching down the stone hallway.

"Tigress!" He spoke up after her, but the fur on her shoulders didn't even bristle in recognition of her name. She was out of his sights an instant later. "Wait," Po mumbled uselessly. He sat there dumbfounded awhile longer, and then finally stood to his feet, but he didn't move. What was he supposed to do?

Tigress obviously wanted to be left alone, but he couldn't just sit in this room while she kept watch. Po decided to give her a few minutes. He made sure everything was returned to its proper place from before they came, double checked, found a string of dried fruit in the drawer beside the bed, ate it, triple checked everything, and then sighed as he made his way out into the hallway. The guilt Po had over his actions last night weighed down on him heavily, but he couldn't help going back to it again. A shiver ran down his spine.

_**The previous evening… **_

"_Close your eyes," he had whispered; watching in shock as she slowly did what she was told. Po swallowed, wetting his parched throat, feeling more nervous than when he had dropped from the sky and found himself standing between Tigress and Oogway's pointing finger. But somehow he knew this had to happen. He needed to do this and somewhere in his chest a deep-set courage arose and propelled him forward. _

_Po's mouth covered hers carefully, with inexperience and hesitance, and for the longest moment neither Master did anything. And then the trembling in his fingers stopped and she felt more alive than she could ever recall. Her lips were warm and welcoming, and his own moved against them in confusion, not knowing what they were supposed to do. _

_Tigress breathed out through her nose and cupped his cheek. She responded to the kiss gently, and to him it seemed like they were in the middle of a dance. Slow and clumsy at first, their strides labored, but suddenly they found the beat. The blaze that had drawn them into doing this blew up in their faces and turned into a raging inferno. Po's hand touched her face, then her shoulder, and then just wrapped around her altogether, pulling her closer. _

_Tigress' paws were on the back of his neck, pressing him to her and holding him in place while their mouths mashed into each other over and over again. He inched forwards, realized he couldn't get any closer and almost knocked Tigress onto her back by accident. He held her in place and she laughed into his ear at his clumsiness. It was the first genuine, non-teasing laugh he had ever heard her make and he smiled against her lips at the sound. _

_Their "dance" continued awhile longer, dragging on until the beating in their hearts died down and the fire had grown so much that if they didn't call an end now they would never stop. Po's mouth lingered on hers before finally pulling back, placing his forehead against Tigress' and opening his eyes. Their gazes watched each other in shock as the flying sensation began to diminish and gravity took its toll once again. _

_He didn't have any words to say and he knew neither did she. Eventually they disentangled themselves from each other and sat with their backs against the wall. After a silence where nothing really needed to be voiced Tigress reached into her pocket and pulled out the firestone and string. She tied them together then tied them to him. _

"_I won't lose it," he swore. _

"_Then as long as you have it, you have me," she told him. _

_After that they talked for a long while, still caught on a semi-high from the kiss. They talked about everything possible, and yet nothing at all. He had never heard Tigress speak so openly before, and that night Po gained an even deeper respect for her as she whispered about her values and everything she believed in. It continued on like that until they both were spent and his eyes kept drifting shut, then he mumbled a goodnight and hauled himself up onto the rock bed. The last bit he remembered went like this… _

"_Ti?" _

"…_Yes?" _

"_You asleep?" _

"…_Yes." _

"_Are you sure?" _

"_What is it, Po?" _

_There was a pause. "Do you sing?" _

_And another pause. "Pardon?" _

"_Have you ever sung before?" _

"_Po, everyone has sung before." _

"_Prove it. Sing for me."_

"…_What? No." _

_He sat up and looked down at her. She was sitting in her meditating position with closed eyes. "Why not?" he asked._

_She glanced over at him briefly. "Go to sleep, its late." _

_He sighed and returned to staring up at the ceiling. "I won't laugh." _

"_I am not singing to you." _

"_Fine," he murmured, rolling over onto his side, "goodnight." _

_It was a while later that he was awoken by a sound he'd never heard or that he doubted anyone had ever heard before. A soft haunting melody from the corner of the room, a voice so rich it made his skin crawl and he listened in awe. _

"_Deep in the evergreens, come with me there,_

_Dream by the brook, fly through the air,_

_Hide from the world; with me, please stay,_

_Into your heart I'll steal myself away."_

_Po smiled and allowed the feline's words to lull throughout his head. He wondered what it would be like to run away from all that he knew and escape into the evergreens with Tigress. To dream and talk late into the night without having a troop of murderous animals less than four hundred meters away. Normally Po would have caught his train of thought before it went too far, but he was tired and her voice was like a lullaby. The final thought the panda had that night was of how close she had been next to him and how nice it would be to kiss her whenever he wanted. _

"_Hide from the world; with me, please stay,_

_Into your heart I'll steal myself away." _

_**The present day... **_

And just like that, after only one night Po's heart was stolen away. He had always been fond of the tiger Master, that no one would even try to deny, but now his fan-boy admiration had intensified into something that honestly scared the dumplings out of him. All he'd done was kiss her, and all she'd done was let him, but he knew that now things would be different. Po didn't know exactly in what way, it might be awkward, it could feel righter than ever before, but it definitely wasn't going to be the same.

Po was halfway out the window and reaching to grab hold of the edge of the roof when an echoing blare bounced off the stalactites overtop of his head. It sounded like a horn. Seconds later a furry body launched from the top of the roof, and managed to dodge past him in through the open window. Tigress' orange pelt grazed his as she landed on one knee and sprung to her feet. Her eyes were alight with a newfound spark, and Po could identify that look anywhere. It was that savage cat-like excitement she got when she just knew something was about to happen, and as he watched her everything else drained away.

"Was that a horn?" he asked, following her down to the lower floor of their stone building.

She nodded, glancing with her peripherals out every window they passed. "They decided to retreat farther back into the caves."

Po smirked, "guess they got tired of waiting."

When they reached the bottom level they crept quietly to the open doorway that was connected to the pavilion outside. Suddenly the clack of metal-layered-feet on stone told them the pandas were moving and Tigress silently pushed them both back into the shadows. Her paw was resting on his chest protectively as her ears flicked back and forth. The marching slowly grew softer and when she was sure it was clear she allowed Po to wiggle out of her grip.

"We'll follow them," Tigress told him and began to make her way out the entrance.

"We won't split up," He warned, knowing that dividing up was one of her favorite tactics. As if to prove it right she shot him a distasteful glare. "I'm serious; we don't know how dangerous they are. We got to play it safe."

She huffed, "Fine, now hurry up and pull your weight, Panda, we're falling behind."

Po sighed as she took off after the clacking-metal, dodging the blue lights from the torches hanging on the walls and sticking to the darker patches. "And she's back," he grumbled with a smile, relieved that at least one of them could act like their normal selves after what happened last night, before kicking his own butt into gear.

They were going after Nigulasi, a man who could very well make up fifty percent of his DNA, as that little truth hit him he felt like retching all over the cobble stoned ground. However, Po repeated Tigress' words over and over in his head. _"He's not my father, he's not my father. Only my sire. Can't be my father, I already got one of those. Tigress won't let me hurt him; she won't let me near him. We're just following them to the forbidden treasure, that's all we're doing. We aren't going to fight them…" _He breathed in and out evenly, practicing his exercises Shifu had taught him. Slowly it helped and his concentration came back to him. But no matter how hard he tried Po couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was waiting for them…

and they were headed straight towards it with all sails to the wind.

_::_

* * *

><p><strong>I just would like to give a shout out to Wra1th Raid3r and all his awesome encouragement. I love your story man, keep going strong. :) Sorry I couldn't do the beta thing with this one, but I just felt like if I didn't get it on here now, I never would. I have procrastinating issues, yep it's true. But seriously, Chapter five is all yours to read over. <strong>

**Thanks for reading guys! **

**P.S. Reviews make me happy. **


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